The Italian Mafia in pictures by Patrick Zachmann
When Patrick Zachmann told his mother that he wanted to become a photographer, instead of answering, she just looked in the phone book to find a professional. Like all caring mothers, Zakmann's mother wished for a bright future for her child. Therefore, she called the famous Henri Cartier-Bresson (co-founder of Magnum agency) to his personal number. His ex-wife picked up the phone. She didn't give a single piece of advice, but described in colors how hard it is to live with a photographer. Forty years later, one glance at Patrick Zachmann's portfolio is enough to say with certainty that his mother had nothing to worry about.
In the late 1970s, Zachmann filmed on the streets of Naples accompanied by anti-mafia brigades. He photographed marginalized groups in Hong Kong and immigrants in Marseille. Zachmann himself recalls that his first serious reportage was in Portugal in 1975, immediately after the Carnation Revolution. "I really wanted to explore the country and its social, political and economic situation. I traveled around Portugal with a backpack and what I learned myself. My business went uphill after this experience," says Zachmann.
Ultra-Orthodox Jews and security guards are waiting for Ariel Sharon's arrival in the Christian part of the Old City.
Naples, Italy, June 1982. A mafia member is arrested by an anti-mafia brigade.
Naples, Italy, June 1982. Women mourn their sons who were arrested for drug trafficking.
Hong Kong, 1987.
Paris, France, 1981. Mother of Patrick Zachmann (left) and her sisters.
Naples, Italy, March 1982. Prostitutes and transgender people are warming themselves by the fire.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, 1989. French actress Beatrice Dahl.
Naples, Italy, June 8, 1982. Kiro Astuto, known as "Outlaw", one of the leaders of the Nuova Familiglia clan, killed by one of his own.
Hong Kong, 1988. A young prostitute and her boyfriend, a gang member.
Marseille, France, September 1984. A girl from the second generation of North African immigrants.
Marseille, France, September 1984. Algerian wedding at the Bassin estate.
Villiers-le-Belle, France, 1989. This family lives in a special area in the complex "Derriere-le-Mur-de-Monseigneur", which consists of thousands of apartments.
Marseille, France, 1984.
Naples, Italy, June 1982. At the police station, several children (the youngest is eight years old) are caught red-handed after a robbery.
New York, 1987. The Uus family, in which three sons graduated from Harvard with honors.