Donato Di Camillo

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Donato Di Camillo is an American photographer and video documentarian,[1] best known for his New York City street photography and documentary portraits of the fringe and underdog populations of the United States.[2] His work has been celebrated around the world and featured in publications including American Photo magazine,[3] Stern[4] and Amateur Photographer.[5]

Di Camillo rose to prominence as a street photographer quickly, within four years of his first photographic activity. His work has been compared favorably to that of his influences, including Bruce Gilden, Robert Frank and Diane Arbus (other stated influences[6] include Richard Avedon, Sally Mann, Martin Parr and Garry Winogrand).[7] Priscilla Frank wrote in the Huffington Post: "The photographer remains committed to capturing people on the fringes of society, those that often remain unseen or, even worse, deliberately ignored. The sharp and colorful images linger on every single sloppy detail, translating the ugly beauty of being a human being into intoxicating images that, like a shot of hard booze, will burn in a good way."[8]

His photo essay blog, Faces & Places,[9] appears weekly in The Common Reader,[10] a publication of Washington University in St. Louis.

Background[edit]

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Di Camillo became intensely interested in photography while serving out a federal prison sentence in Federal Correctional Institution, Petersburg[11] in Hopewell County, Virginia. After his release in 2012, he taught himself to use a camera while under home confinement. At first, he photographed, bugs, plants and other subjects within the 120 feet of the home he was restricted to. Upon gaining his freedom, he turned his lens toward people. In part due to his sensational backstory, he and his work were soon featured in publications and news broadcasts around the world, including the BBC, Washington Post,[12] CBC[13] and Huffington Post.[14] He was also invited to speak at the Hearst magazines annual summit.

Beach Body Bingo[edit]

Di Camillo received international attention for his Beach Body Bingo[15] project, focused on the community on and around the famed boardwalk in Coney Island, N.Y.

Projects, exhibits and commissions[edit]

Di Camillo's Coney Island portraits were featured in the group exhibit, Greetings from Coney Island, which ran from June through September 2018 in the Hon. Charles P. Sifton Gallery of the U.S. Eastern District Courthouse in Brooklyn,[16] the same building in which, years earlier, he had been convicted and sent to prison.

In October, 2019, he was invited back to the gallery for his first solo exhibition.[17] Full Circle was a critical success and drew wide attention to Di Camillo's work.[18]

His work was featured in the 2018 Perugia Social Photo Fest[19] in Perugia, Italy.

Di Camillo was commissioned to photograph the denizens of Louisiana in November 2016. His subjects included descendants of slaves, the Lake Charles SWAT team and a leader of the United Daughters of The Confederacy.[20] The following year, he carried out a similar project in Cuba.[21][22]

In February 2019, Di Camillo received international attention for his portraits and exposure of the homeless community[23] in affluent Cape May County, N.J.[24][25]

That same month, Di Camillo's work was featured in The O.G. Experience,[26][27][28][29] an art exhibit in Manhattan, inspired by and sponsored by HBO Films' drama, O.G.. The art on display was created by artists who were formerly incarcerated in the U.S. prison system.

Di Camillo shared a collaborative exhibition and panel discussion with internationally acclaimed fashion, fine art and documentary photographer Jamel Shabazz[30] at the Photoville[31] festival in Brooklyn in September 2019.[32]

Di Camillo conducts workshops[33][34] in New York City and other cities (including Havana). He currently resides in Staten Island, NY.

COVID-19 photography[edit]

Di Camillo was a primary photographic and video documentarian of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in New York City.[35] He is credited with exposing the overflow conditions in funeral homes caused by the crisis. The exclusive photo exposé, written with John Griswold, was published in the Common Reader in April 2020.[36]

Awards[edit]

Di Camillo was listed among LensCulture magazine's 100 Top Street Photographers Awards of 2016[37] (in its international competition among artists in 141 countries) and a finalist in its 2018 Portrait Awards.[38]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Donato DiCamillo". donatodicamillo.com. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  2. ^ "Donato di Camillo Focuses on the Krusties". November 28, 2018.
  3. ^ "Consent Form". American Photo. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  4. ^ "Donato DiCamillo: Wie New Yorker das Strandleben genießen". Stern. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  5. ^ "Donato Di Camillo – from ex-convict to celebrated street photographer". amateurphotographer.co.uk. September 15, 2017. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  6. ^ "Ep 214: Donato Dicamillo shoots street portraits from the heart - Gina Milicia".
  7. ^ "The Candid Frame #340 - Donato DiCamillo".
  8. ^ "In Prison, A Man Decided To Become A Photographer. 10 Years Later, He Is One". HuffPost. September 7, 2016. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  9. ^ "Faces & Places Archives".
  10. ^ "Common Reader".
  11. ^ "FCI Petersburg Medium". bop.gov. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  12. ^ "The Washington Post". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  13. ^ https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/824964675532 [dead link]
  14. ^ "In Prison, A Man Decided To Become A Photographer. 10 Years Later, He Is One". HuffPost. September 7, 2016. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  15. ^ "Donato Dicamillo - Beach Body Bingo".
  16. ^ "\".
  17. ^ "Charles P. Sifton Gallery | Eastern District of New York | United States District Court".
  18. ^ "Full Circle".
  19. ^ "Donato di Camillo". December 21, 2017.
  20. ^ "NYC Street Photographer Donato DiCamillo, in the Deep South | The Education of Oronte Churm". insidehighered.com. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  21. ^ "Boys will be boys Photo by Donato Di Camillo — National Geographic Your Shot". National Geographic. Archived from the original on September 24, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  22. ^ "Projects". Donato DiCamillo. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  23. ^ ""Hugh, Cape May, New Jersey" - Common Reader". December 11, 2018. "Hugh, Cape May, N.J."
  24. ^ "Man on mission to give homeless people some dignity - by photographing them as if they are royalty". Man on mission to give homeless people some dignity – by photographing them as if they are royalty
  25. ^ "Stark images show Jersey Shore county's homeless problem. 'These stories need attention.' - nj.com". March 6, 2019. Images show New Jersey's homeless problem
  26. ^ "O.G. - the O.G. Experience".
  27. ^ "Formerly Incarcerated Artists Headline 'The O.G. Experience' Exhibit". February 25, 2019.
  28. ^ "HBO's "The O.G. Experience" Turns Prison Art into a Political Statement". February 20, 2019.
  29. ^ "This Must-See Exhibition Gives a Platform to Incarcerated Artists".
  30. ^ "Jamel Shabazz".
  31. ^ "Space Invaders: Getting up Close and Personal with Donato DiCamillo – Photoville". Archived from the original on February 27, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  32. ^ "Perspectives: A Conversation led by Jamel Shabazz – Photoville". Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  33. ^ "Space Invaders: Getting Up Close and Personal with Donato DiCamillo". Photoville. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  34. ^ "Workshops".
  35. ^ "COVID-19: Life & Death on the Streets".
  36. ^ "To Live and die with COVID-19 in New York".
  37. ^ "WINNERS—LensCulture Street Photography Awards 2016". lensculture.com. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  38. ^ "WINNERS—LensCulture Portrait Awards 2018". lensculture.com. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
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