The photographer Clara Vannucci weaves together stories of defendants, bondsmen and bounty hunters in today’s New York, offering a visual narrative of an unexplored zone in the United States’ legal system, where crime and security clash and merge.

In the American legal system, an individual accused of a felony is called a defendant, who while waiting to be tried can go on living as a free man, as long as he pays a sum of money as a guarantee that he will appear before the court. If the defendant is unable to pay, bondsmen, or guarantors, take responsibility for the bail. It is up to them to persuade the more recalcitrant defendants to appear in court, even with the help of bounty hunters.

Bail Bond is a journey into contemporary New York—remote, murky and dangerous. A New York that is light years away from the city we have grown accustomed to, and thus more fascinating and real. A selection of images from Bail Bond was  exhibited at Addis Photo Fest, fotofestival in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia, as well as at several venues in Italy (Le Murate, Florence, December 2014; Officine Fotografiche, Rome, January 2015;  the jail complex Opera, Milan, March-April 2015).

 FABRICA

Fabrica is a communication research centre. It is based in Treviso, Italy, and is an integral part of the Benetton Group. Established in 1994 from a vision of Luciano Benetton, Fabrica offers young people from around the world a one-year scholarship, accommodation and a round-trip ticket to Italy, enabling a highly diverse group of researchers. The range of disciplines is equally diverse, including design, visual communication, photography, interaction, video, music and journalism. Fabrica aims to inspire a specific creative category of young “social catalysts” who, at the end of their experience at the centre, will continue their work independently. Today more than ever, Fabrica’s research is a cross-disciplinary commitment wherein communication interacts with other vital sectors like the economy and social and environmental sciences and, through continual experimentation, is alert to the changes and trends of modern society.

FABRICA’S EDITORIAL AREA

Directed by Enrico Bossan, Fabrica’s Editorial Area, investigates social and cultural change through researching. The challenge is to cover the unseen, the forgotten, and the invisible. The area publishes and distributes books, journalistic reportages, photography projects, narrative works, multimedia and video documentaries.

Exhibition curator: Mauro Bedoni
Designer: Gabriele Riva