Post-war Europe in the pictures of the Italian photographer Piergiorgio Branzi

As a pioneer of Italian photojournalism, Piergiorgio Branzi captured a key moment in European history - the period after the Second World War. He began by riding a motorcycle along the Italian coast less than 10 years after the end of World War II. And then he continued his reports in Spain and in Moscow. His work is a combination of impressive documentary and art photography. Today, the 89-year-old photographer is part of the legacy of early Italian photography, a guru and an inspiration for future generations.

Branzi, who had grown up in Florence, did not have a career as a photographer. He worked at his father's bookstore and studied law, when a chance visit to the exhibition changed his life. "In 1952, I was enrolled in the University of Law, when the exhibition of Henri Cartier-Bresson was first opened in Florencesays Branzi. - I was never interested in photography, but it was like the first time I watched a movie. I left the exhibition and bought a camera. I considered this a new language. In a sense, it was like the appearance of a computer or mobile phone. This new technology has become my passion. ".