Week 5 - Exhibition Analysis

This week as a class we visited the exhibition titled "Life, Love, and Death in Sicily" by Letizia Battaglia in The Photographers Gallery. Battaglia captures the bloody reality of life in Sicily during the late 1900s during a time of rampant mafia violence.

Letizia Battaglia, Near the Church of Santa Chiara. The killer's game. Palermo, 1982

The first image I decided to include in this blog post is called Near the Church of Santa Chiara. The killer's game. This photo is similar to most of the set in that it is in black and white. It captures a child pointing a gun while bracing against a building of some kind. The child is also wearing a mesh covering to conceal their identity. This photo was likely captured with a large aperture, as the depth of field is shallow with only the child in focus against the out of focus background. This directs the viewers attention to the subject, and puts on display the unfortunate reality of a child participating in violence by aiming a gun at presumably a person out of frame. This photo captures a very relevant theme throughout the exhibition in that all members of Sicilian society were participants in the violence, against their will or not. The latter half of the title The Killer's Game is likely a commentary on the child participating in violence, as if it is a game that the child has to play in order to survive, contrasted with the typical vision of what one imagines for a game a child would play.

Letizia Battaglia, Via Pindemonte. Carnival party at the Psychiatric Hospital. Palermo, 1986

This image captures a child standing in front of a building, holding an umbrella and tote bag in his hands. It is shot at eye level, giving it a very personal feel, as if the viewer is looking the child in the eyes. There is light coming from in front of the child, likely natural sunlight. His facial expression seems to be reserved, with a slight look of nervousness and curiosity. The title implies that this child is pictured outside of the psychiatric hospital, leaving the viewer to wonder if this child is a patient there or potentially visiting someone else. This photo relates to the theme of children being caught in the crossfire of mafia violence in Sicily at the time. While this photo itself does not capture a moment of violence, it displays the distress a child in Sicily at this time had to endure.

Letizia Battaglia Prisoners behind bars at the Ucciardone prison, Palermo, 1983

The final photo I will examine as a part of this exhibition shows prisoners reaching their hands out of a prison window, posing for the camera. The image is shot from below, with the camera angled up towards the prisoners. There is natural light shining on the prisoners however it is apparent that the cell they are inside is void of any light. This photo conveys the presence of crime in Sicily at the time, with prisons likely filling up constantly with criminals. Most Sicilians likely had a family member or friend in prison at the time, and this image captures the casual nature of crime. The prisoners seem to be at ease showing peace signs to the camera, allowing the viewer to see the personality of the prisoners on some level. I consider this a good photograph as the contrast of the blank building front with the prison window is pleasing, and the prisoners reaching out and being illuminated by the sunlight contributes to the good aesthetics of the photo.

As a whole, Battaglia does a phenomenal job capturing the raw and unfiltered moments that Sicilians experienced during this era. Seeing the photos together as a series really drives home the themes of violence, innocence, and intimidation that were ever present during times of mafia violence.