Alfonso’s basketball training jersey becomes a deeply symbolic piece. It still bears traces of who he was: his passion for basketball, his energy, and the discipline that shaped his identity. Its texture evokes a closeness that can no longer be reached, like an embrace that somehow remains.
The work brings together the two worlds that shaped his life: basketball, a place of effort and belonging, and the sea, a symbol of freedom and fullness. Together, they recall a young man who found in sport and the ocean different ways of feeling fully alive.
For Malele, the misunderstandings of childhood gradually give way to the awareness of a deeper bond: Alfonso emerges as an essential companion in life, present in every shared memory. The sea also awakens memories of summers spent together and those moments of simple happiness in which their connection revealed itself naturally.
And perhaps this truth remains, long left unspoken: just as he was, he was perfect.
