bio & more

Luigi Fieni has photographed landscapes, culture, and the artistic cultural heritage of the Himalaya for nearly two decades, while working as a conservator of Tibetan art, for a project funded by The American Himalayan Foundation.

As his background is mostly painting, his work is constantly trying to merge photography with painting, experimenting on movement, blur and emotions, trying to produce photographs that are as pictorial as possible.

Fieni never had a proper mentor but the books of his favorite photographers. Toscani’s subversity, Koudelka’s intensity, Salgado’s emotions, Fontana’s abstractionism and Ansel Adams’ technique. The art of Schiele, Munch, Klimt and the whole impressionism movement were a strong source of influence as well.

His photographs are featured in ‘Himalaya: personal stories of grandeur, challenge and hope’ (National Geographic, 2006), ‘Wonders of Lo: The artistic Heritage of Mustang’ (Marg, 2009) and in The Photo Paper Journal (B&W Collection 1 and 3, Color Collection 1 and 3).

Exhibitions have been held in America, Europe and Asia, and his work is part of private collections worldwide, counting prominent venues such as The Manggha Museum (Krakow, Poland), The Taragaon Museum (Kathmandu, Nepal) and The Contemporary Art Collection of The Vatican Museums (Vatican City).

Several of his photographs have been nominated in international photography contests, including the selection for the Prize Voies Off 2013, the Black and White Spider Awards, a Honorable Mention in the 7th Photography Masters Cup, a Bronze and 2 Silvers in the One EyeLand Photography Awards 2013-2014, a Second Place and a Honorable Mention in the Photo Annual Awards 2014-2015, 2 Honorable Mentions at the International Photography awards 2014, a Honorable mention at the Monochrome Awards 2015, a Honorable Mention at the International Photography awards 2016, 2 gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze medal at the Epson International Pano Awards 2016.

As a photographer, Fieni has collaborated with The National Geographic Society, The North Face, The Getty Images, The Financial Times, The Mill Valley Film Group, Skydoor Productions, The American Himalayan Foundation, The Kham Aid Foundation, The Apeiron Foundation, HPRC, Orticolario and Bauer Media.

Born in Italy in 1973, Luigi Fieni studied aeronautical engineering at the University of Rome "La Sapienza", and then conservation of mural paintings at the "Ars Labor Conservation Institute" in Rome. He started his career as an art conservator in 1999, assisting in a prestigious conservation project in the Himalaya. He then became the lead conservator and worked mainly in Nepal, Bhutan, and China, restoring ancient Buddhist art and training local people to preserve their own cultural heritage.

His work as a conservator of Tibetan art and his projects appeared in many major newspapers and magazines worldwide, including The New York Times, The Guardian, The Herald Tribune, The Washington Post, The National Geographic Magazine, and Geo Magazine.

He also appeared in several documentaries including Mustang: Journey of Transformation (Mill Valley Film Group, 2008), Lost Caves Temples (National Geographic, 2009), Secrets of Shangri-La: Quest for Sacred Caves (National Geographic, 2009), Les Chemins du Silence (RTS Switzerland, 2012), Mustang - Das Tor Zum Himmel im Himalaya (3Sat Germany, 2013), Mustang: Le Royaume Des Peintres Paysans (France 5, 2015).

Currently he is represented by The Art of Wild Gallery (Hohenfels, Germany), PhotoEye Gallery (Santa Fe, USA), HyPHen Gallery (Bucharest, Romania), Streaming Art (The Hague, The Netherlands) and Pandora Art Gallery (Bangkok, Thailand). He works as a photographer, for Getty Images and The American Himalayan Foundation, he lives in Germany and he devotes his time to photography and to the preservation of the Tibetan culture.