Giulia Usala's Photographic Project on Turin's Porta Palazzo Market

Giulia Usala, known as Kants Exhibition, has created 'Autoritratto in natura morta' (Self-Portrait in Still Life), a photographic project documenting the waste and labor exploitation at Porta Palazzo in Turin, Europe's largest open-air market. The project focuses on the 'consorzio' area, where first- and second-generation immigrant vendors, primarily of African descent, sell produce harvested by even more exploited immigrant laborers under a system akin to caporalato (illegal gang labor). Daily, vendors set up at 4 AM, sell until 2 PM, then dismantle and clean until 5 PM, leaving behind massive quantities of discarded fruits and vegetables collected by the poorest populations. Usala uses cheap analog cameras (Yashica J.2, Minolta F.25, Olympus shoot&go) bought for under €5, with low-quality Kodak 200 and FujiFilm 200 film. Each photograph is printed exclusively on recycled canvas. The project reflects on her own privilege as someone born on the 'right side' of the world. Born in Sassari in 1993, Usala studied cinema and music at the University of Turin and now lives in Rome.