Gomma Photography Grant 2016
This land is my land.
Photographer
Jean-marc Caimi and Valentina Piccinni
This land is my land.
14 Oct, 2022
A long-term project focused on the olive tree pest called Xylella Fastidiosa, which is devastating olive groves and land in Salento, Puglia. What is happening on the peninsula goes far beyond the reported crop pest. Together with centuries-old trees, the disease is seriously endangering the entire economy, which is mainly based on olive oil production, and destroying an entire cultural heritage. The origin of the epidemic is not certain and the solution to stop it has not yet been found. International economic interests in the region are triggering complicated and controversial debates, thus slowing down action on the ground. In a nebulous scenario, speculation and suspicion are growing, to the dismay of the entire population. This work has been done in collaboration with all the farmers, agronomists on the front line and the National Research Council, with its team of scientists working to find a viable solution to tackle the spread of the pest.
About the photographer
Jean-marc Caimi and Valentina Piccinni
Jean-Marc Caimi and Valentina Piccinni collaborate since 2013 for documentary and personal photography projects. They focus on contemporary subjects, with a particular attention on the human aspects of each story. Their works are regularly featured in the press and media worldwide: The Guardian, Die Zeit, Politico, Le Monde, L’Espresso, Internazionale, Wired, GQ, Newsweek, The Sunday Times and many others. They are recipients of several awards such as the 2021 Planches Contact, the ISPA Award for best photo story, The Sistema Festival "Reset" Award, the 2020 PHmuseum Of Humanity Grant in the solo show category, the 2019 Sony World Photography Award in the category “Discoveryâ€, the 2018 Istanbul Photo Book Award, the 2016 Gomma Grant for best B&W documentary work. They are exhibited throughout Europe and Asia in galleries and festivals, such as the Biennale Für Aktuelle Fotografie, Delhi Photo Festival, Lumix Festival, Fotoleggendo, Phest, Voies Off. So far they published six books, with "Fastidiosa" (for Overlapse) and "En Présence De L'Absence" (for Éditions Bessard) being the most recent. Books also include the trilogy on cities in transition comprising “Güle Güle†about Istanbul, “Forcella†focused on Naples and “RHOMEâ€, which was shortlisted at PHotoESPANA Best Photobook of the Year 2019. "Güle Güle" received a special mention at Kassel Dummy Book Award 2019 and was finalist at Luma Rencontres Dummy Book Award in Arles and was shortlisted at Arles Author Book Award 2020 and Prix Nadar 2020.
