Photographer Roberto Pazzi is an Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this documentary photography. From the project ‘Iran’. To see Roberto ‘s body of work, click on any photograph.

The Shah
Portrait of a man in historical dress

Sar Agha Seyed
The stepped village of Sar Agha Seyyed in the Zagros Mountains

Sunset on the Mosque
Daily scene at the Mosque of Kashan

Pigeon Tower
Interior of a pigeon tower used in desert areas to gather pigeon guano as fertilizers for agriculture

These photographs are drawn from a larger photographic reportage produced during two journeys through Iran in 2019. Together, they offer a fragmented portrait of the country, moving between everyday life, religious practices, architecture, and local traditions. They reveal the relationship between people, place, and culture. The images are intended to be read as individual moments, while also forming a broader impression of a country observed beyond its most familiar representations.

The Ancient House
An elderly woman preparing the dinner in her very ancient hand-dug house amid the rocks in Meymand

The Luthier
Portrait of a young luthier in his workshop

The Afghan Boy
Portrait of a young Afghan man

Call to Prayer
Group of women in front of the Jameh Mosque of Yazd

The Dervish
Portrait of an elderly dervish

Artist Statement

Roberto Pazzi is a documentary and cultural photographer whose work explores human identity through the traditions, values, rituals, knowledge, and everyday experiences of communities around the world. His photographic research investigates how cultural identity is expressed and transformed, and the relationship between heritage and contemporary life.

Rather than approaching cultures as distant or exotic subjects, Pazzi develops his work through direct and sustained encounters with the people he photographs. Time, observation, dialogue, and personal relationships are fundamental to his practice, allowing him to move beyond surface representation and engage with the stories, values, and connections that shape individual and collective identity.

His photographs combine people, rituals, traditions, and everyday moments, creating a visual record of cultural memory and contemporary life. Photography becomes a means not only of documenting how people live, but of exploring the knowledge, relationships, and sense of belonging that define a community.

His long-term project HUMANKIND, developed over more than a decade across three continents, is the central expression of this research. The project examines evolving forms of human identity and the transmission of cultural heritage, observing what endures and what changes as communities respond to a rapidly transforming world.

For Pazzi, documentary photography is both observation and interpretation: a way of creating meaningful encounters and revealing the human values that connect different cultural experiences.

His work approaches cultural diversity as a living, evolving expression of humanity, contributing to a deeper understanding of how identity is formed and how knowledge and traditions are carried across generations.