A photography exhibition entitled My Best of Italy began on Saturday at the Italian embassy in Beijing to commemorate the country's national day on June 2.

The exhibition comprises 14 photos displayed on seven big panels hanging from the ceiling. The pictures were produced by Italian photographer Patrizia Bonanzinga and show Italy through her lens combined with other photos.

The artist worked entirely in black and white and combined two photos together with one on the top of another. While the two photos are different in style they together have a single theme and offer a contrast effect on the changes of Italy.

One of the highlights of her work is a picture of ancient Rome, which consists of two photos harmonized together. The upper part of the picture is the exterior of ancient buildings in Rome taken at night, while the other part reflects the inside of the structures. By adeptly integrating the two pictures, the author brings the mysterious world of ancient Rome to the viewer.

Italian cultural counselor Barbara Alighiero told METRO the exhibition was one of the activities the embassy had planned to mark Italy's national day and the works of Bonanzinga best present the unique culture and history of Italy from a unique perspective.

"It is one of the most memorable photography shows that I have ever seen, which is full of outlandish taste, presenting one of the most ancient countries in a most unusual way but it is full of human interest," said Zhao Tingting, an Italian major at the Beijing Foreign Studies University.

My Best of Italy made its China debut in Tianjin early this month and was first seen in 2007 in Venezuela. It has been warmly received in many countries.

Born in 1954 in Italy, Bonanzinga became a professional photographer in 1995 and has lived in Mexico, France, the United States and China. She is adept at presenting the history and culture of a country with the help of modern techniques of photography.

Bonanzinga has published three sets of works, including the well-known The Road to Coal, which is comprised of her observations on China's coal industry.

Using black and white film, she traced China's coalmines and the lives of miners starting from Datong, Shanxi province, to the capital. Along the axis, she presented a touching, yet very true and complex scene from a foreigner's point of view.

Bonanzinga lives in Belgium and works as a freelancer photographer.