“The Mafia threatens us; the investigation continues.” This is the English translation of the words that splashed the front cover of L’Ora – a Palermo-based left-wing newspaper – on 20 October 1958. It was the headline a day after its offices were bombed following its scrutinising reportage on the infamous criminal organisation. This steadfast declaration sums up the bravery of people dedicated to denouncing an establishment that had long been rooted at the intersection of the Sicilian city’s business, politics and violent criminal activity. At the helm of L’Ora’s photography team was Letizia Battaglia (1935-2022).
Battaglia took around 600,000 pictures for the publication as its Photo Director. Together with her colleagues, she was present at every major crime scene in the city and used her camera to document the brutal everyday reality of living under the Sicilian Mafia. The results are heartbreaking, from A Mother with A Portrait of Her Missing Son to A Teenager with No Hope for the Future. Pictured here is an intense black-and-white portrait of writer Rosaria Schifani (b.1970). She is the widow of bodyguard Vito, who was assassinated along with Judge Giovanni Falcone by the Mafia in 1992. Battag- lia’s desire for justice, independence and change fuelled every aspect of her undertakings, from civil rights activism to politics.
Battaglia reflected: “I was with my bare hands, except for my camera, against them with all their weapons. I took photos of everything. Suddenly I had an archive of blood. An archive of pain, despair, terror, drug-addicted youths, young widows, trials and arrests.” This exhibition at The Photographers’ Gallery invites visitors to see the photojournalist’s powerful work across five decades – in all its heart and humanity.
The Photographers’ Gallery, Letizia Battaglia: Life, Love and Death in Sicily | Until 23 February
thephotographersgallery.org.uk
Image Credits:
- Rosaria Schifani, widow of escort agent Vito, killed together with Judge Giovanni Falcone, Francesca Morvillo and his colleagues Antonio Montinaro and Rocco Di Cillo. (Rosaria Schifani, vedova dell’agente di scorta Vito, ucciso insieme al giudice Giovanni Falcone, Francesca Morvillo ed i suoi colleghi Antonio Montinaro e Rocco Di Cillo.) Palermo, 1992 © Courtesy Archivio Letizia Battaglia.
- Boss Gaetano Fidanzati in court. (Il boss Gaetano Fidan- zati in tribunale.) Palermo, 1978 © Courtesy Archivio Letizia Battaglia.
