Rafał Milach's 'The Winners' on Belarusian Propaganda at Rome's Galleria Interzone

The exhibition 'The Winners' by Polish Magnum photographer Rafał Milach, on view at Galleria Interzone in Rome until June 6, 2025, exposes state propaganda in Belarus. Milach infiltrated the propaganda system by posing as a propaganda photographer, documenting winners of state-sponsored contests from 2010 to 2013. The series includes over 50 photographs and reproductions of his notebook. Curated by Katarzyna Sagatowska, the show is organized in collaboration with the Polish Institute in Rome and Warsaw's Jednostka gallery. Milach, born in 1978, is a professor at the Krzysztof Kieślowski Film School of the Silesian University in Katowice and co-founder of Archive of Public Protests and Sputnik Photos. His work focuses on tensions between society and power structures. He joined Magnum Photos as a candidate in 2018, became an associate in 2020, and a full member in 2023. His photographs are held in collections including the Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts (Japan), Kunstmuseum Brandts (Denmark), and Photo Elysée Museum (Switzerland). The project critiques the regime of Aleksandr Lukashenko, described as Europe's last dictatorship, and highlights the oppression following the 2011 presidential elections. Milach's ironic approach subverts the government's efforts to whitewash reality, portraying improbable heroes such as a woodcutter, a hunter, a national library employee, a couple in love, a hotel maid, and a potato company president.