The kid with the plastic bag, Sri Lanka, 2025

Stefano Delìa  

Born in Rome (Italy) in 1984, Stefano Delìa is an Italian photographer and visual artist with more than twenty years of experience. His practice moves across multiple languages — from conceptual photography to documentary projects, from food and luxury still-life to cinematic narratives — while maintaining a consistently recognizable authorial identity: the transformation of matter, the tension between the natural and the artificial, and the relationship between body, object, and environment. 

He graduated with honours in Communication Sciences from the University of Rome "Tor Vergata" in 2008.

In 2009 he was selected for a Magnum Photos workshop with Chris Steele‑Perkins — joined by Bruce Gilden, Carl De Keyzer and Antoine d'Agata — and the final works were exhibited at MACBA, the Museum of Contemporary Art of Barcelona. Later that same year he entered the studio of photographer Fabio Lovino (Contrasto), becoming his first assistant until 2012, an experience that shaped his approach to portraiture, set dynamics, and large‑scale productions.

In 2012 he became the photo editor of the online magazine , curating covers for numerous artists and illustrators from Rome's contemporary scene. He later became the head of the visual department at the communication agency BLANK — which he contributed to founding — overseeing photographic and video productions until 2023.

His work is grounded in slow, analytical, often site-specific processes in which photography becomes an instrument of ontological observation: not to represent what is already visible, but to reveal what usually remains hidden.

His professional experience spans the luxury world — Dom Pérignon, Ruinart, Krug, Burberry, Alcantara — as well as international film and television, collaborating with HBO, Netflix, and various production companies, together with starred chefs such as Niko Romito, Heinz Beck, Tommaso Tonioni, Domenico Marotta and many other leading figures in contemporary gastronomy. This hybrid dimension allows him to combine technical precision, artistic sensitivity, and narrative depth in projects that speak to institutions, brands, and curatorial contexts. His work has been published in numerous print and online magazines, including and many others.

Delìa is represented by Saccage (Rome/Paris), Herd Represent (London) and Image in Progress (Rome) for his fine art limited editions. He is currently expanding his work toward academic and educational fields, bringing his methodology — based on research, critical vision, and a conscious use of contemporary technologies — into advanced teaching programs on photography and creative thinking.

His work aims to build a coherent visual ecosystem capable of positioning itself within international circuits of contemporary art, publishing, residencies, festivals, and cultural institutions, while maintaining as a core principle a continuous inquiry into the relationship between image, matter, and identity.

Awards & Recognitions