“We gathered in front of the Palazzo Ducale on one of those gray mornings, yet filled with the charming light that the right bank of the River Po so often gifts to Guastalla. And despite the early start, all my students were there, eager to put into practice the few lessons I had presumed to impart to them during the photography course held the previous days at the Maldotti Library… I always told them that when you take a picture, you must have something to tell others—or, at times, even just yourself—and I always gave them the example of a poet bent over his desk, who cannot fill the blank page unless his heart is full of happiness or anguish that must, by necessity, flow from him and reach us through his pen…”

With these words, the Reggio Emilia-based photographer Giuseppe Maria Codazzi recalls the experience that gave life to the idea of founding a local photography club to document and promote the immense historical and cultural heritage of the city of Guastalla. In 1999, the Maldotti Photography Club was formed, and it has been successfully active ever since: it regularly organizes meetings with professional photographers, specialized courses, and themed exhibitions, showcasing strictly black-and-white photographs. Since 2011, it has participated in European Photography Week. In June 2012, the CFM received the national “Elio Botti – Come Acqua Saliente” award for Communication.