 © Marco Garofalo Da pescatori a tessitori. Villaggio di Urus Villaneque, Bolivia. Questo villaggio a 3600 metri di altitudine è stato ricollocato dal governo centrale, a seguito degli sbalzi climatici del regime idrico del lago salato di Poopò. Questa famiglia, come tante altre, ha rinunciato alla pesca e si è dedicata all'attività agricola e oggi produce 4 tonnellate di quinoa e 1 tonnellata di patate all'anno; non abbastanza per guadagnarsi da vivere, tanto che marito e moglie hanno aperto una piccola sartoria casalinga per integrare le loro entrate tessendo maglioni di alpaca. |
 © Marco Garofalo Batterie alla carica Sunderband, West Bengala, il guardiano delle batterie. Mini-grid fotovoltaica di 30kW per alimentare scuola, mercato e 60 abitazioni. Tutta l’energia viene dal sole. Ma non sempre brilla. La batterie permettono di utilizzare l’energia elettrica quando le fonti rinnovabili non sono disponibili. Una componente sempre più importante e strategica dei sistemi energetici di tutto il mondo. |
 © Marco Garofalo Qualche watt in più. N'golupa boma, Mkuru, Uwiro Tanzania, dicembre 2017 Solomoni sposta il pannello per raccogliere qualche raggio di sole in più. È un pannello da 80W fornito da una società emergente e pagato a rate mensili di 20€. Pagamenti con mobile banking tramite telefonino. Controllo in remoto ed assistenza guasti garantiti nel cuore della savana. Servizi moderni per società tradizionali. |
Marco Garofalo
ENERGY PORTRAITS
Stories of watts and people. Marco Garofalo’s photographs document the challenge of universal access to modern and sustainable forms of energy – one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Since 2017, he has visited hundreds of families in three continents to portray the wide variety of solutions used to supply electricity in remote areas of the planet.
In western society the concept of electricity is often connected to the idea of turning a switch on and off, but in fact a large number of number different methods can be found around the world. Some people are connected to the electricity grid, but cannot rely on a steady supply; while some small photovoltaic systems can provide a rather efficient service in certain isolated areas.
Recent advancements in technology have allowed us to support the national network with innovative solutions. Countless decentralized systems, mainly solar, offer an alternative service: sometimes more cost effective and efficient of the national network.
The idea of representing this challenge through a particular kind of photographs, the so-called “energy portraits”, was inspired by Matteo Leonardi’s project.
Marco Garofalo’s visual research was supported by WAME World Access to Modern Energy (an association of energy suppliers company founded on the occasion of EXPO 2015) and has now become a project of the Foundation AEM of a2a, as well as a touring exhibition available to be displayed in public and private venues.
SPECS
Number of photographs: 50 colour photographs
Size: 50 x 70 cm
Type of prints: Digital prints on DiBond
Side activity: Marco Garofalo and the other authors of the project are available for conferences and talks
Curated by: Photo Op – Livia Corbò and Marta Cannoni
Technical Sponsor: Fondazione AEM
Marco Garofalo is a photo/video reporter, his work focuses on positive aspects of social and cultural themes to create innovative. His photographs have been exhibited in several group and solo exhibitions, including: Step 35 and The City Rises, a large outdoor photo exhibitions about the urban and social transformation of the city of Milan, featuring images by some masters of photography like Gabriele Basilico; Purgatorio the photo-story of the year that Juventus football spent in B League; Kinois, boys from Kinshasa, a photographic collection resulting from the course he taught in the capital of Congo; Chinese dream, photo essay on the urban and social transformation in China; Underground DOC a series on the young rappers of Milan suburbs.
He is the official photographer of the urban and architectural redevelopment project Hines-Porta Nuova, Milan. He was the stage photographer of the film “On the Bride’s Side” presented at 2014 Venice Film Festival.
He is a regular contributor of the magazine Africa with whom he also has organized several exhibitions including: Africa and Football (2010), Good Morning Africa (2012) and One day in Africa (2014).