• Michele Palazzi

Stories

Finisterrae

Finisterrae departs from a reflection upon the ancient region of Lusitania in today’s Portugal, in search of the origins of European culture and identity. This “end of the world”, left me with a strong feeling of abandonment, like a place that is condemned to remain as it is, motionless. I set out to capture this claustrophobic atmosphere, representing the subjects as cultic figures. Time dissolves in a sense of inaction. The landscapes seem to be the only testimonies of time passing.

Black Gold Hotel

In the last decade the economy of Mongolia has grown at an unprecedented rate. Gold, coal and copper mines beckon investments by foreign companies. In this accelerated development traditional ways of life, based on ancestral nomadic herding, are undergoing a crisis. Many families have moved in large urban centers. Others, however, try to resist. Black Gold Hotel is a journey in the daily lives of people all over the country, from the families in the Gobi desert to the young people in UlaanBaatar.

Portfolio

black-gold-hotel-19 Tuvshinbayar Sugirsuren with his children during a sand storm. Ömnögovi Province, Mongolia, 2012
black-gold-hotel-2 Tuvshinbayar and his wife Erdenchimeg are getting ready to cull one of their camels. They only do this 2 or 3 times a year. They store the meat for themselves besides selling it to the miners' camp. Omnögovi Province, Mongolia, 2012.
black-gold-hotel-4 One of the few bus stops, some kilometers away from the city of Dalanzdgad. Despite the fast growth of the economy, in Mongolia highways and public transportation are, for the most part, still not available to the population. Ömnögovi Province, Mongolia, 2013
black-gold-hotel-7 Mongolian metal band in concert. Ulan Bator, Mongolia, 2013
black-gold-hotel-6 A teenage girl playing table tennis in the city playground. Youngsters living in the cities take the Westerners as their role model. During leisure time they meet with friends in the playgrounds, go to the cinema, sing at Karaoke, play video games, watch TV and surf the internet. Dalanzadgad, Mongolia, 2013
black-gold-hotel-3 A ger in the Tsogttsestiie sum during a cold winter day. In the Tsogttsestiie area only a few nomad families still resist because of the difficult ac- cess to water which is over used by the mining companies. In the Gobi region water mostly comes from a limited underground basin, destined to be emptied if the mining industries continue to access it as their main source. Ömnögovi Province, Mongolia, 2013.
black-gold-hotel-5 University student. Ulan Bator, Mongolia, 2013
fade-away An abandoned house situated in the mountain in front of the village. Guizhou, Yeli Village, China, 2015
fade-away-5 Leishan Minority School, a student waching a basketball game in a rainy afternoon. The school hosts 3000 students, most of them come from the nearby villages and 90% of them come from the Miao minority. The high school is one of the excellence of the Guizhou province. Guizhou, Yeli Village, China, 2015
fade-away-2 Li Puwang bringhing the harvest of his field home before breakfast. Guizhou, Yeli Village, China, 2015
fade-away-6 The inhabitants of the area use to grow a little field on the mountains in front of "Relocated houses for ecomigration project" where they live. Guizhou, Yeli Village, China, 2015
fade-away-4 All the neighbors and family of Yu Zhengxian are celebrating his marriage shoting fireworks in the streets of the village. Guizhou, Yeli Village, China, 2015
fade-away-3 Neighbors and family of Yu Zhengxian are celebrating his marriage with fireworks in the streets of the village. Guizhou, Yeli Village, China, 2015
sulcis-2 The abandoned house of the director of the mine of San Giovanni. The "Sulcis-Iglesiente" is the poorest province in Italy. After the abandonment of the mining industry by the government, the area has become a center of chemical industry, which has slowed down the unemployment caused by the closure of the mines and changed forever the surrounding area. Sardinia, Sulcis-Iglesiente, San Giovanni, Italy, 2013
sulcis Show of town which is held in the summer to attract tourism in the city that after the abandonment of the mines remained almost uninhabited. The "Sulcis-Iglesiente" is the poorest province in Italy. After the abandonment of the mining industry by the government, the area has become a center of chemical industry, which has slowed down the unemployment caused by the closure of the mines and changed forever the surrounding area. Sardinia, Sulcis-Iglesiente, San Benedetto, Italy, 2013
finisterrae-2 The interior walls of the Chapel are covered and decorated with human skulls and bones. At the entrance a warning says “We bones that here are, for yours await" Alentejo, Evora, Capela dos Ossos, Portugal 2016
finisterrae-3 Portrait of a grape picker. In 2005, South Oregon University identified Alentejo as the world's most challenged wine region from a climate change perspective. Alentejo, Portugal 2016
finisterrae-16 The Romans mined in the São Domingos area for gold and silver for about 400 years. In 1855 mining was resumed, as the international demand for copper grew during the Industrial Revolution. About 25 megatons of ore had been extracted when the mine was closed in 1966. Alentejo, Sao Domingos Mine, Portugal, 2016
finisterrae-4 Abandoned marble quarry. Since the fall of Saddam Hussein, Iraq has been one of the main consumer of the marble extract from the quarries around the area of Vila Viçosa (Alentejo). After the Nato invasion of Iraq the extraction of marble in the area decreased substantially, as today more than half of the extracted marble is acquired by Saudi Arabia. Alentejo, Vila Vicosa, Portugal, 2016
finisterrae-6 An abbandoned stable of the marble query. Alentejo, Vila Vicosa, Portugal, 2016
finisterrae-5 Character of the Portuguese traditional comedy. Alentejo, Portugal, 2016
sulcis-4 Industrial center of Portovesme, despite the lights on, most of the industries are closed or in maintenance. The "Sulcis-Iglesiente" is the poorest province in Italy. After the abandonment of the mining industry by the government, the area has become a center of chemical industry, which has slowed down the unemployment caused by the closure of the mines and changed forever the surrounding area. Sardinia, Sulcis-Iglesiente, Portovesme, Italy, 2013
sulcis-3 Alessio plays in the streets of San Benedetto, where his father moved after the divorce The "Sulcis-Iglesiente" is the poorest province in Italy. After the abandonment of the mining industry by the government, the area has become a center of chemical industry, which has slowed down the unemployment caused by the closure of the mines and changed forever the surrounding area. Sardinia, Sulcis-Iglesiente, San Benedetto, Italy, 2013
the-roman-garden-6 Valle dell'Orfento. Abruzzo, Italy, 2020
the-roman-garden-3 Venus statue. Villa di Livia, Rome, Italy, 2018
the-roman-garden-7 Vesuvio vulcano. Somma Mount, Italy, 2017
the-roman-garden Portrait. Rome, Italy, 2017
the-roman-garden-4 Fighters during a match. Rome, Italy, 2017
the-roman-garden-5 Portrait. Rome, Italy, 2019
the-roman-garden-2 Fighter bleeding after a match. Rome, Italy, 2018

Michele Palazzi was born in Rome in 1984.
In 2007 he gained a master degree in Photography at the Scuola Romana di Fotografia. At the beginning of his career, he has worked on the social project Migrant Workers Journey recipient of the Project Launch Award 2011 at Center Santa Fe. Afterwards he started working on “Black Gold Hotel”, a long-term project about the modernization impact in Mongolia. Later, he worked on a long-term project about the disappearance of the rural traditions in China.
His work deals with current social issues through a subjective approach, and his projects confront the contemporary man with his origins, through a look that investigates the past in order to interpret the present.
He lives in Rome.

Rome, Italy

More info

Stories

Finisterrae
Black Gold Hotel

 

Books

FINISTERRAE: terra di confine. Origini edizioni and Leporello. 2019

Awards

2021. Recipient of New Post Photography Award
2018. Nominee – Prix HSBC pour la Photographie
2017. First Prize – Conflict – Visible Withe Photo Prize, Celeste Network
2015. First Prize – the Daily life category / Stories of the World Press Photo
2013. First Prize – Environmental Photographer of the Year 2013
2011. CENTER Santa Fe Project Launch Award

Exhibitions & Screenings

2019. Raconte-moi une histoire – La jeune photographie Italienne, by Institut culturel italien. Paris, France
2017. Human Ecology // Images in the Anthropocene by The Independent Air. Aarhus, Denmark
2017. Festival di Fotografia contemporanea – DiecixDieci. Gonzaga,Italy
2016. Oltre la Muraglia, by Sant’Anna School of advanced studies and Confucio Institute. Pisa, Italy
2015. World Press Photo Exhibition
2013. Black Gold Hotel, Athens Photo Festival, Greece
2013. Environmental Photographer of the Year 2013 at Royal Geographical Society London, UK
2012. Migrant Workers Journey, Galleria San Fedele. Milan, Itay
2011. Migrant Workers Journey, New Mexico Museum of Art. Santa Fe, USA