"Home Video Diary"

A book by Attilio Solzi, published by Void.

“If there is a task for art it is to represent its time. Art that does not hurt anyone probably does not serve anything.” - This was Attilio Solzi’s answer when told that some situations portrayed in ‘Home Video Diary’ would raise a few eyebrows amongst conservative people.

The straightforward title of Attilio Solzi’s new book might not do justice to its complexity.

The reader only needs to glimpse a few pages of his work before they are flooded with questions. What is happening? What leads these people to such surreal moments? Who are they? Where do these daily life spectacle take place?

Attilio’s way of seeing it is: “Ultimately, life is a comedy played between the drama and the grotesque. Depending on where you were born, one or the other character prevails. Around me, 90% is grotesque. I start from there, but then each "actor" adds their own ideas.”

Fascinated by vernacular photography and family home videos made during holidays and parties, Solzi’s idea was to make low-quality videos that mix the contemporary view of directors such as Ulrich Seidl and the poetics of certain avant-garde photography of the 1970s.

‘Home Video Diary’ is a project that started about 10 years ago. It was a "time-consuming" job over the years that only ended when Attilio’s camcorder broke.

The videos have been shot in the small Italian village where Attilio lived. The people portrayed on those videos aren’t actors or models but his acquaintances, friends and neighbours... People that he knew. People who allowed him to enter into their intimate moments, and who in return were able to enter into Attilio’s peculiar universe.

Who is playing a character? Who is playing themselves? It is hard to figure out where reality ends and fiction begins. The strong bond between artist and the people within the images blurs such definitions. In the words of the artist: “’Video Diary’ is fiction but wants to be truer than the truth. It is a look at daily life where the border between the real and the surreal is not clear.”

‘Home Video Diary’ is definitely a book that raises more questions than answers.

200 Pages
404 Photos
1 Spaghetti Recipe
Text by Achille Filipponi
Language: Italian / English
Designed by João Linneu

ISBN 978-618-83318-0-8

Buy "Home Video Diary" by Attilio Solzi now.

"Paradise Inn"

A book by Marinos Tsagkarakis, published by Void.

“Paradise Inn” aims
to highlight the consequences
of this massive and
 uncontrolled tourist
development.

The word "Paradise" literally means walled enclosure or recreational and entertainment area, probably derived from the Persian word "Pardes" which is attributed to the walled pleasure gardens of the Great King of Persia.

In recent decades, countless of artificial "paradises" were developed around the world and their number still grows faster than ever before. This industry that manufactures an entertainment product of mass consumption meant to satisfy the average man's need for recreational time and fun, is called tourism.

The tourism industry has drastically intruded the land, transforming it into a product while causing several effects with a severe socio-cultural character. Destinations are in danger of losing their original appearance, structure and identity, through a standardization process that aims to satisfy the tourists' wishes. What is not understood though, is that this process doesn't degrade only the final product but mostly affects the local societies which have to survive the low periods relying only on the remnants of a seasonal industry.

“Paradise Inn” aims to highlight the consequences of this massive and uncontrolled tourist development.  In Greece, as in Southern Europe in general, these effects are reflected on the constructed landscape mostly through the unregulated and shoddy architecture, the kitsch and folklore decoration,  the construction and adoption of artificial elements and entertainment structures, the falsification of identity and cultural heritage, the violation of the natural environment and finally the desolation that occurs after peak season.

As Μ. Proust said, the only true paradise is the paradise we have lost."Paradise Inn" is a tribute to all the lost paradises, in which millions of ordinary people manage to impose their own selves, the desperate experience that anyone could eventually face: the impairment of our quality of life and aesthetics and the loss of use of the natural space.
 

Artist book by the Greek photographer Marinos Tsagkarakis.

15 x 21 cm
84 color pages divided into 3 x 28 pages books
Handbound
With 2 postcards
Edition of 90 + 10 A.P.s

ISBN: 978-618-83318-1-5

Buy "Paradise Inn" by Marinos Tsagkarakis now.

"Cidade de Pedra"

A book by Antoine d'Agata, published by Void.

From 2005 to 2009 Antoine d’Agata had spent most of his time in Cracolandia, the crack neighborhoods of São Paulo and Salvador. Doubtless the roughest areas of Brazil.

With 169 images and more than 140 unseen photographs, “Cidade de Pedra” is the most comprehensive document about this period. It reveals the brutality and the
intimacy of his experience.

228 Pages
57 Unbound Folds
169 Photos
142 Unseen Images

56 Full colour Offset unbound folds
+ 1 Black and White fold with text in 3 languages:
French, Portuguese and English
Designed by João Linneu

ISBN 978-85-93212-00-0

"Cidade de Pedra" was launched at Paris Photo, 11 NOV '16

Buy "Cidade de Pedra" by Antoine d'Agata now.

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