Systems of Harmony | Marta Giaccone

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Systems of Harmony is a personal portrait of 2016 suburban America.
In the 19th century a large number of Europeans and Americans went to great lengths to establish small utopian communities throughout America. They were preachers, social reformers, industrialists, philosophers, anarchists, journalists and socialist thinkers who attracted large crowds to their intentional colonies.
They were exclusive and religion-based establishments, that saw in the vastness of the American wilderness a favorable economic, political and social environment; nevertheless, due to their strict rules, they didn’t last long: some a few months, others a few years.

I have traveled to many of these former utopias drawn by their often evocative and tenderly pretentious names such as Utopia, New Harmony or Modern Times, out of curiosity for what those places look like now and wondering where America is, 150 years later.

Marta Giaccone
b.1988, Milan, Italy
After pursuing a BA in English and Hispanic American Literatures at the University of Milan, Italy, and an MA in Documentary Photography at the University of South Wales, Newport, UK, I am currently dedicating my life to photography. My work and research mainly focus around issues concerning family and youth with an interest in the feminine perspective. I am also interested in contemporary American society. My practice evolves through long-term documentary projects shot on medium and large format film, allowing a more intimate and contemplative approach. In the past I have interned at Magnum Photos NYC, Bruce Davidson, Alessandra Sanguinetti and Mary Ellen Mark.
www.martagiaccone.com