Gianpaolo Arena develops research projects on environmental, documentary, and social issues, using landscape and portraiture to explore anthropized spaces and the sustainability of contemporary cities. Since 2010, he has been editor of the international photography magazine Landscape Stories and organizes workshops, editorial projects, and exhibitions. He is also co-founder and curator of the ongoing CALAMITA/À Project (2013–).
Arena has written extensively for monographs, catalogs, and exhibitions, including texts for Carlos Casas: Vespers & Madrigals; Raimond Wouda, Céline Clanet, and Jan Stradtmann: 1 km; Joël Tettamanti: Past, Present, and Future; and Karen Knorr & Olivier Richon, and Andreas Weinand: Youth Codes. His curatorial work includes the Venice Pavilion at the Architecture Biennale (2016) and the MH ART PROJECT (2020), an artist residency in the Champagne/Cognac regions of France in collaboration with Barbarito Bancel Architectes and LVMH.
His projects and exhibitions have been shown at leading institutions and festivals such as Museo M9, Triennale di Milano, MACRO in Rome, SI Fest, the 10th Architecture Biennial of São Paulo, and Alt+1000 in Switzerland. Recent publications include The Valley Between Peaks and Stars (Quodlibet, 2021, with Marina Caneve), A Folktale From Vietnam: Speeding Motorcycles and Roasted Lemongrass (The Velvet Cell, 2021), and LLIGAMS (Quodlibet, 2025). His ongoing research project, Flood Risk Management Prevention, Adaptation and Resilient Strategies in Ho Chi Minh City, is being developed with the University of Trento, IUAV Venice, and the National University of Vietnam, with a forthcoming book to be published in 2025 (Lettera22).
