61st [Portrait] Notes of melancholy and wisdom

By Jesse Chun

PANICALE, Italy — Younghi Pagh-Paan’s enthusiastic neighbor Bruno drove us in a beat-up vintage Fiat through the hills, in search for an inspiring shoot location. On the way, we found a beautiful open field, completely bare except for the surrounding trees and a single table made of layers of rocks.

The composer sat down, gazing farther out to what was ahead of her — it was a sense of dejavu from the way she looked in her room, sitting by her piano, contemplating the notes that would fill her blank page.

The photo shoot continued at her house, a cozy two-storey home that she shares with her husband, the composer Klaus Hubert. Pagh was warm and hospitable, serving us figs and prosciutto during lunch, and though the photo shoot lasted throughout the humid day, the genuine smile rarely left her face.

As the sun was beginning to set, Pagh sat on her balcony looking out at the view of Panicale. With each click of the shutter, her smile began to fade. Looking somber, she quickly wiped a tear from her eye. Her smile reappeared shyly, as she said embarrassed, “Sometimes I get sad when I sit here and think about everything.”

At that moment, Pagh’s smile was complex and humble, layered with notes of melancholy and wisdom. A generous, kind soul with years of trials and triumphs hidden behind her smile, Pagh was simply beautiful to photograph.

Jesse Chun is a fine art photographer whose works have been exhibited and published internationally. Chun earned a bachelor of fine arts degree in photography from Parsons School of Design in New York. Visit www.jessechun.com (fine art) or www.jessechunphotography.com (editorial).