Beyond the Walls of Rome

Everyone has a story to tell and everyone has a smartphone to tell it with. “Beyond the Walls of Rome” was a photojournalistic contest that encouraged all citizens to get behind the camera and capture storytelling moments in the life of Rome’s peripheral neighborhoods. The underlying idea is that photojournalism – and photography, more generally – can play a substantial role in enhancing social inclusion if in the hands of enough people; when many stories are told, awareness builds around them and meaningful changes start to occur.

Problem statement: 

People living in the peripheries of Rome need to be seen in order for their challenges to be visible, understood and tackled.

Target group:

People living in peripheries of Rome

Proposed solution: 

Beyond the Walls of Rome is a photographic contest and exhibition about the peripheries of Rome. The project was set up to give a voice to the peripheries of Rome and tell an often neglected reality of life and history of the people who live here. 

Activities:

Beyond the Walls of Rome is a project of photojournalism dedicated to the outskirts of the Capital, created with the artistic direction of one of the most awarded Italian photojournalists, Francesco Zizola. After launching a contest open to everybody, a jury of photojournalism experts selected more than 250 shots on the outskirts that were exhibited in the prestigious MACRO museum in Testaccio between January and March 2016. The photographs of the winners were shown alongside professional works about the suburbs made exclusively by the photographers De Luigi, Monteleone, Turetta, Protti and Zizola himself.

Short term goals / Results:

• 1050 photographs submitted by citizens.


• Exhibition at MACRO Testaccio, with over 6000 visitors.


• Articles and debate on the state of Rome’s peripheries on national and international media.


• The project was selected by the WEF as an example of art as an engine of social change.

Avaiable metrics:

• Number of photographs submitted to the public competition.


• Number of visitors to the exhibition at MACRO.

Collaborators:

- Municipality of Rome

- Coca Cola

- ACEA

- IED Roma

- ENEL