Miron Zownir - Quaderno Palermo #4
€35.00
Under his belt Berlin, London and New-York in the 1970-80s, legendary cities in legendary time. Since then, they have been gentrified by relentless capitalism and therefore irretrievably lost. Today in front of his camera Palermo. The city that is stuck somewhere between the past and the future slapping in the mixture of a sticky heat, exhausting laziness and indisputable tradition. Tradition that plays a role of a protective menat or ultima ratio safeguarding the local lifestyle. Miron Zownir faces Palermo, one of the few cities in Italy he set a goal to photograph recently, without prejudice, but with his signature nonconformist attitude. Ready to discover,
he wonders its markets and cemeteries, peeps into stadium, descends to the catacombs.
The unbridled riot of color that impresses so much new arrivals is distilled in his photography to black and white austerity. No frills. The usual. In a strange way, such asceticism suits the city;
it becomes more compact, less festive, sometimes surprisingly frowning and even grim.
In a word, it reveals itself exactly as it really is. Not a postcard for tourists. Palermo smiles at the photographer with the toothless smiles of an old men and street beggars, flexes the muscles of teenagers whose fate will almost certainly lead them to the dark side of society.
It opens its insides full of cheap Chinese garbage, mismatched cutlery and antique furniture from the homes of the impoverished aristocracy. And finally, it mocks death, because who could possibly be afraid of it, if your body is well dressed and securely stored, and your soul is immortal. Capturing this panorama of things that constitute Palermo Zownir stays true to himself – focused, fearless, empathetic but non-judgmental, dark. His left hand is still strong, but he no longer jumps into the fight first, and like an experienced fighter, he measures his strength before striking.
It seems the fight with Palermo is not over yet, but the first round has already tickled the spectators’ nerves.
Kateryna Filyuk
The books is a result of Miron Zownir’s residency with 89books in spring 2024.
1. Edition of 300 09/2024
Text by Kateryna Filyuk
Book Design by 89books
60 pages
21X27 cm
37 BW photographs
Softcover
Digital print
ISBN 979-12-80423-47-4
Category Book