Marc de Tollenaere

Treviso Christian Centre

Treviso is a small town in northern Italy. Since the beginning of the ’90 the immigration here has always been extremely abundant; companies like Benetton, Stefanel, De Longhi and many others required workers at a bargain price. Now Treviso has the highest percentage in whole Italy between immigrants and natives, and of course integration is difficult. But there is a place where people from Italy, Ghana, Nigeria, Byelorussia, Togo, Brazil, Uruguay, and many others countries meet together every Sunday; this place is the Treviso Christian Centre.
The pictures of this reportage have been taken during six years, since 2003, and I’m still on with this project.

Marc De Tollenaere was born in Tripoli, Libya, in 1969, from Belgian father and from once Italian region Istra refugee mother. He studied photography at TPW with Gianni Berengo Gardin, David Alan Harvey, Kent Kobersteen, Antonin Kratochvil, Bob Sacha and Anders Petersen. Professional since 2002, his first book “Venice on the edge of light” Biblos 2007, sold out in a few months.
After it he published the following books:
“Calcutta” Edizioni Fratelli dimenticati onlus Italy 2007,
“Verona” Biblos Italy 2007,
“There is no world without Verona walls” Biblos Italy 2007,
“Verona, the culture of beauty” Biblos Italy 2007,
“Venezia 1720” with Caffè Florian of Venice Italy 2008.
“Gondole” Biblos 2009.
Distinguished photographer in the Day’s Japan World Photojournalistic Award in 2005 with the reportage made in Kolkata, India, “Children of the city of joy”.
Distinguished photographer in the Italian National Association Professional Photographers in 2008. FotoVideo magazine of Prague has published in March 2008 his reportage made in the Belgian coast “Shrimp fishermen on horses”. He also made works for Bellitalia, Sundays Times, and many others.
In Italy and abroad he was represented by the Grazia Neri agency of Milan from 2005 to 2008. Since 2007 he has been the face of Manfrotto photographic products.