One of the biggest cliches – and truths – you will hear from travelers is how the best part of visiting a place is the people. Although tourists have been saying that for decades, it wasn’t until recently that portraits of people in the city in which they live became just as popular as images of buildings, bridges, and landscapes.
Humans of New York, Brandon Stanton’s photography project that he started in 2010 and that went viral over the past summer, has become the template that all other human/city photo tributes copy. Now there is Humans of Rome.
Woman in Front of Termini Station
"A Real-Life Fashion Show" in Rome's Centro Storico
Humans of Rome, begun by Roman photographer Marco in April 2012, captures the unique spirit of the Eternal City. Marco juxtaposes ancient and modern by capturing Romans of every color, creed, and age standing in Rome’s cobbled streets, posing next to fast Italian cars, marble fountains, thousand-year-old structures, and iconic umbrella pines.
I think many travelers forget that Rome is a dynamic city – a city of tradition, yes, but also one teeming with expats and immigrants. Marco’s Humans of Rome includes them all. I hope this beautiful, photographic love letter to one of my favorite cities in the world continues and spawns offshoots in Florence, Bologna, Naples, Milan, Torino, Venice…
Go check out Humans of Rome now to see the photos and read the stories (most in both English and Italian).
All photos by Humans of Rome
