Blanco

Stefano De Luigi spent four years documenting the various realities faced by the visually impaired around the world, particularly those with Onchocerciasis*, also known as river blindness, a preventable disease.

The realities that confronted him urged him to look for a way of bearing witness through suggestions and approaches that avoid both compassion and blame.

The journey blanco (since blindness is seen as a constant vision of white), starts in 2003 and ends in 2007, reporting on the blind conditions in four continents and the countries Liberia, Nigeria, Uganda, Rwanda, Congo, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Thailand, China, Laos, Vietnam, Bulgaria, Lithuania.

*Onchocerciasis is the world second-leading infectious cause of blindness. It is caused by parasitic worms transmitted through the bite of the black fly which live in fast-flowing rivers, and along fertile banks where farming communities are often located. Also known as river blindness, this disease is debilitating, disfiguring and endemic in more than 30 countries in Latin America, Africa and in Yemen. Spread by the bites of tiny black flies, parasitic worms enter the body, mature, and reproduce. The offspring, known as microfilariae--threadlike worms--swarm under the skin and cause intense itching. If the microfilariae migrate to the eyes, vision can weaken and lead to blindness. Just as devastating as the health impact is the disruption of family life and education resulting from the disease that directly impacts local economies and long-term development, especially when one considers that life in these fertile river valleys is dependent on water where they fish, bathe and wash their clothes.