Gomma Photography Grant 2015
Inside Outside Under Bucharest
Photographer
Massimo Branca & Igor Marchesan
Inside Outside Under Bucharest
14 Oct, 2022
A hole in the ground. The border between two parallel universes.
When we first visited their subterranean house in Bucharest city centre, we never expected that over time we would become part of their family. Children, aged up to forty years, were the street tribe of Gara de Nord.
The leading figure of the group, a charismatic and experienced man called Bruce Lee, spent the last few years trying to provide a comfortable house for the community to stay in. He was proud to show their struggle for self-sustenance, despite being neglected by the rest of the world. As if they were natives of the street, they sought survival through the resources that were available to them. But spring 2014 brought overwhelming exposure to the Gara de Nord story: it repeatedly appeared in local and international media with reports focusing mainly on drugs abuse. One of the results being the arrest of Bruce Lee and many others in July 2015. Accused of organized crime and drug trafficking, they were sentenced to 10-20 years in prison.
For two years we lived on the streets of Bucharest with one of the most marginalised communities in Europe. During this prolonged stay, our own identity became increasingly blurred. The boundaries between us gradually disintegrated, paving the way for a new and clearer understanding. Having experienced some consequences of social disorder ourselves, we have been forced to reconsider our own condition; realizing how fragile and unpredictable the principles that govern the existence of humankind are.
About the photographer
Massimo Branca & Igor Marchesan
Born in 1985, I graduated in Cultural Anthropology after studying Classical Piano, Visual Arts and Statistical Sciences at academic level. I enjoy playing chess and philosophise about life and the universe. I speak four languages and I try to learn more.When I was 23, thanks to a dear friend, I randomly found myself on a four months long journey in South America. After two months of travel on the Andes, I lost my camera and most of the pictures I had taken. However, the following period was among the most amazing I ever had. Living essentially like a vagabond, I learned to privilege a fulfilling and true experience over a blindfolded chase of aesthetics and often stereotypical content. I learned a lot.Later on, I was part of some ethnographic research expeditions in Sardinia and Madagascar, where documented rituals and ceremonies, and I taught to Italian college students how to use photography in visual anthropology and storytelling.In 2009 I co-founded Collettivo Fotosocial, with the aim of using visual storytelling to spread awareness of the human society. We organised public talks, educational programs and exhibitions ad hoc (even one 3000m above sea level, on the top of Marmolada mountain in the Dolomites).With an esteemed friend, in 2013 I initiated a long-term research project in Romania. As part of the investigation we ended up living in extreme urban conditions, having a chance to observe, document and experience the heavy effects of social marginalisation. The outcome of this work - Inside Outside Under Bucharest Project - was presented, awarded, published and exhibited worldwide (list below). One dense selection of images is collected in a special book printed independently and in limited edition.
