"In a year I lost 40 kilos. I can't even drink wine anymore: the taste is altered by the medicines". This is how photographer Oliviero Toscani describes in an interview with Corriere della Sera the incurable disease that struck him, amyloidosis .

"It is not known" how much time is left to live, "of course I am not interested in living like this. I need to call my friend Cappato - he continues -, I have known him since he was a boy. Every now and then I feel like it. I already told him once and he asked me if I was stupid".

"It makes me laugh: the beauty is that I had never thought of finding myself in this situation , it is a new situation that must be faced - adds Toscani explaining that he is undergoing an experimental treatment -. The beauty is that you are no longer interested in homeland, family and property, the ruin of man".

The photographer, also known for his shots for Benetton campaigns, would like to be remembered not for a single photo but for "the whole, for the commitment. It is not an image that makes your story, it is an ethical, aesthetic, political choice to make with your work". He is not afraid of dying, "as long as it doesn't hurt. And then I have lived too much and too well, I am spoiled. I have never had a boss, a salary, I have always been free ".

Even in his illness, his relationship with his friend Luciano Benetton remains, "when I told him I had a rare disease he replied: 'Oliviero, you were born with a rare disease!'. We talk twice a week, but I don't want him to come. This kind of thing is demanding for me."

What makes him angry, Toscani confesses, «is Meloni with her victim mentality! Someone who can't say 'I'm anti-fascist', what is she? They are not capable of governing, they have no excuse. But Italians are made that way - he concludes -. Look at America how they rebel. In a month, enthusiasm and creativity come out...».

(Online Union)

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