Anthropology on film

The bicycle is central in the artistic journey of photographer Filippo Trojano, alongside the Indian community of farm labourers in Sabaudia. Mandeep and other stories¹ is the result of ten years of work, teetering between art and anthropology. It is an ode to slowness, but also to photography as an embodied, relational act.

«For those who live there, or even just visit, it is obvious: the Indians cycle along the Litoranea, a busy road where cars whizz past and they can stay hidden among the pine trees. Italians, on the other hand, ride along the seafront, in full daylight and in plain view». Filippo Trojano, photographer and photography teacher, has been capturing images of these two communities — Italian and Indian — for over ten years. Both live in the same areas around Sabaudia, in the Lazio region, yet they come from different backgrounds and socioeconomic conditions. The paths they take, both metaphorically and in everyday life, are parallel. And yet, they share a history of migration and rides across the plains of the Pontina: on one side, brand-new mountain bikes or charming city bikes with baskets; on the other, rickety two-wheelers, flaking paint and hints of rust here and there.

The result of hundreds and hundreds of photographs is gathered in Mandeep e altri racconti (Trojano, 2021), a book in which the camera — strictly using film — becomes a key to interpreting a land of migrations.

How Mandeep e altri racconti came to be

«One evening I was in my car and in the dark of night, under heavy rain, I turned my head and saw four Indians pedalling slowly, wearing nothing but plastic bags to protect themselves however they could. That image deeply moved me, and from that moment I started observing the phenomenon of cyclists».

This is how Trojano’s work began — by observing a flatland, like so many others.

«It is a slow-life land, with two major roads. I wanted to tell the story of the two communities that cross them: the elderly — their children and grandchildren — who came over eighty years ago from Northern Italy to settle in these recently reclaimed lands; and then the more recent wave of migration in the last few decades, with the arrival of numerous Indian communities, mainly from Punjab, mostly employed as agricultural labourers», Trojano explains.

In Bella Farnia — a kind of “Indian ghetto along the Litoranea” — Trojano started a photography workshop for children and teenagers back in 2010. That is where he met Mandeep (who was ten at the time), later giving his name to the 2021 photo collection. «There were lots of kids living there with me, and we used to play together. After just a few days we became his assistants and translators», the young man recalls. «He would tell us what he had in mind, and we translated the project for the adults, trying to convince them to be photographed. Sometimes they refused, but we managed to carry on». It is from these group photos that Trojano’s work emerged, years later.

Mandeep is now 24 and living in Bergamo, working in a warehouse for a multinational company.

«I am doing fine here for now, I would not want to go back», he says. «My only regret is not having time to take a photography course, but I would really like to one day». His enthusiasm burst forth as a child thanks to the workshop arranged in that small town in the province of Latina. «One of my fondest memories — Mandeep continues — is waiting for Filippo. We would look forward to Thursdays, when he would show up with his strange little camera, loading the film so we could start shooting together. It felt like a game: besides the photos, he brought a football and a frisbee, and we had so much fun».

The work is dedicated precisely to the children of that workshop. Their presence can be felt in the photographs themselves, taken using a tripod slightly lower than standard height so that even the youngest could look into the camera’s viewfinder and take part in the creative process

The bicycle in the frame

Straddled in the middle of the road or held by the handlebars, leaning against a wall or used as a walking stick, the bicycle is employed by all the subjects of Mandeep (Trojano, 2021) to navigate the flat landscape around them. It becomes an implicit vehicle (in the most literal sense) for a message that embraces slowness and opens our eyes to equality, while never pretending to ignore material and other kinds of differences. «I chose to photograph people on bikes — real turtles — moving slowly as a life approach», says Trojano, who chose to shoot the entire project on film, as is rarely done today.

«Medium format camera, tripod: shooting like this means you are forced to be slow and very visible», Trojano explains. «The very act of taking the picture becomes a declaration of intent to those you are about to portray — it is not a stolen photo».

The project is anachronistic for another important reason — a strong social motivation. «Since you cannot review the photo instantly, we had to exchange numbers and often ended up meeting a second time to look at the final work. It was a way to maintain the network, to keep in touch. You are almost forced into a second meeting», the photographer continues.

«Shooting on film forces you to travel at bicycle pace. It takes longer and demands uncertainty — you have to wait, develop, and there is always the risk it turns out badly».

Perhaps symbolically, the first photo in the book is stylistically flawed, with burnt edges — a “declaration of fallibility”.

Mandeep e altri racconti (Trojano, 2021) is also Trojano’s first colour photography project. «I usually opt for black and white, which creates a kind of dreamlike suspension, certainly less realistic. Colour, on the other hand, connects me more to reality. In this case, I wanted to stay in the present, to anchor myself to the contemporary moment».

Photography as an act of presence

For Trojano, the longed-for centrality of human relationships is not limited to the choice of film and colour, but is part of photography itself, understood as a relational act “in presence”. Speaking of “contemporaneity”, one cannot help but think of the opportunities brought about by the use of Artificial Intelligence. A poorly taken photo can now be recovered, some of the lengthy development steps sped up, and one could even save on the “human” component of the work. These may be technical improvements, but they come at an inestimable cost. «The encounter would be lost — Trojano points out — and for me, my job is about meeting people, getting to know each other.

I am deeply convinced that Artificial Intelligence is a powerful creative tool and I do not think it should be demonised. At the same time, it is a different form of creation. Photography is a physical act of presence. Unlike other expressive forms like painting or writing, which can be created even in absence, taking a photograph captures a relationship».

There is only one exception: death or nonexistence. «If you are no longer here or never were, then AI comes into play with its immense potential. I declare the magic trick: I create you. I like to think of Artificial Intelligence as the three-legged table my grandmother used when I was a child to hold séances. I use it to call on the dead who are no longer with us».

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1. Trojano, F. (2021). Mandeep e altri racconti. The title is the Italian for “Mandeep and other stories”. ↩︎