Roma Books

Taken between 1982 and 1991, the 40-50 photos here are a mix of landscapes, portraits, candids, and abstract jumbles (rubble, construction materials, twisted trees, etc.). And while they certainly capture a certain old-world Mediterranean quality, there's something very unengaging and undramatic about them. Roma is well-known in photography circles (two time Guggenheim Fellowship recipient, solo MOMA exhibit, Director of Photography at Columbia, etc..), so I'm not really in any place to judge, but... The photos all come across as somewhat flat -- lacking in depth or contrast. This may be a product of the the harsh sunlight, or possibly the age or treatment of negatives or the printing, or maybe it's intentional. Whatever the case, there are very few images in the book with any real tension to them in terms of subject or composition. I suppose some may find the book interesting in terms of its portrayal of Sicily as a fairly unmodernized "old world" place, but that strikes me as feeding into a romantic vision of the place, rather than a striking revelation.