Marco Vernaschi

Marco Vernaschi is an Italian visual artist and producer known for his thought-provoking photography and impact-driven campaigns. His diverse body of work spans documentary, contemporary art, and advocacy, often merging artistic vision with activism.

In 2025, he presented ANTIDOTE, a major conceptual framework that confronts the narcissistic ideologies shaping contemporary life by drawing on the relational and empathetic values rooted in Indigenous and ancestral worldviews. Comprising five interconnected series, the project embodies a long-term engagement with climate resilience, social justice, and gender equality. Through these works, Vernaschi examines Argentina’s recurring swings between polarized populisms, explores the convergence of magical realism and climate disruption along Colombia’s Caribbean coast, reflects on the dialogue between ancestral and contemporary feminisms in the Andean Altiplano, and investigates escalating conflicts over land appropriation and ancestral rights in Patagonia.

In 2019, with Gaucha, he contributed to Apple’s global #ShotOnIphone campaign honoring the gaucho matriarchs of Argentina. From 2015 to 2019, Marco served as an external advisor to Argentina’s Chief of Staff Office, aiding in the social development and strategic enhancement of the Northwestern region, particularly the Quebrada of Humahuaca in Jujuy. In 2015, he launched SEEDS for LIFE, a powerful campaign to raise awareness about the harmful effects of pesticides in Argentina. Supported by Coldplay’s Chris Martin, this initiative led to significant regulatory changes regarding agrochemical use.

Marco’s career reached a pivotal moment in 2011 when he was selected to participate in the 54th Venice Biennale. His autobiographical project, Placebo, praised by David Lynch as “a monumental break in photography,” solidified his reputation as an innovative artist, and was also exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome (MACRO), Paris Photo, and the Karl Bulla Museum in St. Petersburg. In 2012, Marco introduced Biophilia at the Noorderlicht Festival, Terra Cognita. This project, which delves into humanity’s intrinsic need to reconnect with nature, was later exhibited at the Tokyo Institute of Photography, Paris Photo, and the Festival Internacional de Fotografia de Belo Horizonte.

As a Pulitzer Center grantee, Marco produced Narco State, an investigation into narco-terrorism in Guinea-Bissau exposing the link between South American drug cartels, Al Qaeda and Hezbollah; Dying For Treatment, addressing maternal health in West Africa; and Child Sacrifice, investigating organ trafficking and ritual murder in Uganda.

Marco's work has garnered numerous awards, including the prestigious World Press Photo Award. He became a member of The Photo Society in 2015.