Cinzia D'Ambrosi

The Other Half is a collection of photo stories exposing the realities of women and children in hidden homelessness in Britain. The project captures their lives of displacement, unsuitable living spaces. Women and children have been hit hard from the economic crisis and lack of homes. Many are left in unprotected and vulnerable situations following marriage breakdown, domestic abuse etc. Their presence among those homeless and in temporary shelters are in large numbers.

In London alone, there are over 220,000 households reported as overcrowded. Overcrowding is affecting hundreds of thousands of people. The negative effects that overcrowded housing has on families are numerous. It is associated with respiratory diseases, including asthma, bronchitis and in severe cases TB, as well as mental health with depression and stress. It has an impact on the quality of life where relationships strain.

The province of Gjacova in Kosovo is one of the most affected by the recent war in the Balkans. It is known for the war starting and ending in this region causing the majority of civilians killings in Kosovo. In some villages, like Meje there are no men left but their widows and children. The fate of these women is uncertain as international charity organisations are slowly moved from the Balkans. The re-construction process has halted leaving most homes half built and unsuitable to be inhabited. The widows and their children have had to seek shelter with relatives, whilst those that couldn't, live in very devastating conditions.

This is a photographic journey about a country that has been devastated by the economic collapse and it is undergoing considerable changes. Iceland was regarded the epitome of a wealthy and uncorrupted place, with an enviable living standard and a population of "happy people". In September 2008 the population woke up to the news that the country's banking system was collapsing due to an unforgivable network of corruption and ill working practices. Many had their lifetime savings wiped out, what was owned on loans became unsustainable to keep, while many were losing work. The economic events is changing Iceland in the way people live to the outlook of the country. Today there are many ghost suburbs where there were supposed to be new suburbs. The once 'unheard of' shopping in second hand places is becoming a necessity with queues of people for cheap goods. These are some of the aspects that I am portraying in "Iceland Changes".

Shot for the Metro.co.uk A photo story of a male escort in London, UK. https://metro.co.uk/2016/06/01/in-pics-what-its-like-to-be-a-male-escort-in-london-5911602/

Adam Bambrough

Amid the serious economic and political upheavals gripping Europe, a great number of social movements have emerged, particularly in Southern Europe from Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy. ‘La Murga’ has began just in this spirit as a social radical movement, born from the dis-affectation of local youths in a town in South of Italy, Battipaglia, on the outskirts of the Triangle of Death, the largest illegal waste dumb in Europe and so called for the large number of cancer related deaths, an area ridden with social and economic problems. Inspired by the Argentinian Carnival dance, la Murga speaks of freedom from oppression rooted in the only day when slaves were permitted to joke about their bosses and to dance and play music. It is about taking control of the street from corruption, injustice, marginalisation with a positive fun like approach. “From the outside people just see the clowns and the street performances. People come out, laugh and join us. Some children are teenagers now. They have grown with La Murga. We don’t talk about politics but we do politics. We defend human rights and we bring attention to local and international injustices”. The group rehearse their dance and music in targeted inner cities areas struggling with poverty, crimes and high unemployment. In this way, they hope to bring to the attention the issues that those areas face as well as invite the unprivileged to join. “Some children have not had any music lessons in their lives due to the lack of resources in their schools. In very deprived areas some don’t even go to school”. The principle is an economy based on sharing skills, without money. The social centres such as ‘Il Giardino Liberato’ in Naples is an example of this, where different people offer their skills to the community without money involved. It is a commitment to a self-organised struggle as the city under the major Luigi Magistris has taken the direct role in national movements of student protests, anti-was marches, anti-austerity and for general strikes. Pivotal in the idea that young people active in the social centres are less likely to fall in the hands of local organised criminal groups, the city has had almost a blank paper on the occupation of unused spaces. It has become a lifestyle built on unity as a strength, political activism which sees La Murga taking a central part. “We fight for the environment. We go out together and bring attention with our colourful clothes and music.” La Murga has also been very active in the message of embracing multiculturalism by going to refugee centres to invite refugee and asylum seekers to join them. “Many organisations speak about integration but they don’t do much practically. I think we have achieved a lot more by inviting refugees and asylum seekers to play with us. They have become friends.”

In the deep South of Italy, rural villages are struggling economically, forgotten by the State. Young generations have left in search for work replaced by migrants and illegal workers. Those that remain can hardly make ends meet. It is a land of extremes, lavishing in opulent weddings at the cost of life savings. These photographs seek to portray a world in between the old and new.

Battipaglia is a town in the Campania region in the South of Italy. The town is one of the many in the area destroyed by camorra (local mafia). Everywhere there are signs of urban decay, which is only the visible part of a degeneration that goes well beyond it. Camorra has taken away vital infrastructures: schools and health clinics have closed down, parks and playgrounds are unsafe or no existent. the society is plagued by problems caused by unemployment and criminality, whilst corruption unables to improve the area. Recently, the news that waste management is in the hands of camorra came afore internationally, however for years toxic waste has been dumped on this land. Battipaglia is not an unique place in a country that is losing its battle to corruption and criminality. This is the first part of a photographic journey that I hope would shed some light to Italy today.

Borders are very interesting both as a concept and as a geopolitical reality. I have an interest in taking pictures at border towns, checkpoints and in general in those spaces that in many ways make them different. Borders people retain an identity often of more than one country. Borders seem to defy laws as much as enforce them very much. This project is about capturing the feeling that border places have, their lawless, timeless and ambiguous quality

Council Estates are a part of London urban landscape. To many outsiders, these areas with high-density housing may appear sinister and to be avoided. Often the creation of estates have generated problems partly for the concentration of various ethnic groups and low income households. Some of these housing complexes have created communities among themselves. Loughborough Estate in South-West London, a complex of high-rise buildings and low flats is one of such areas. It is bearing the hallmarks of inner-city decay: vandalism, drug problems, burglary and violent crimes. Although it had its apex during the 1990's when was highly crime ridden, today most residents still feel a great sense of exclusion and uneasiness. Gun crimes among rival gangs remains a problem. As part of an initiative to shed light on the positive side of the Loughborough Estate and to portray the diverse lives of its residents to develop a sense of community, I was commissioned by the National Lottery to produce a year long photo documentary on "Life on the Estate, Today". This project resulted in a booklet of postcards which were sent to all the residents in the area (40.000 households) and project supporters.