A good 9,714 kilometers separate Milan from Tokyo, yet Toni Brugnoli and Federico Radaelli have managed to unite these two cities, and their realities, in a photographic project and a book.
As they tell us, Toni and Federico met by chance and discovered they had a lot in common: both are photographers and both are in love with car and motorbike tuning. This world of spare parts, modifications and accessories became the object of research for their art and this led to the idea of creating a project linking the Milanese suburbs to the Bosozoku of the Japanese districts.
This is how the book F.R.T.B. was born, containing shots taken over the last five years by the two young photographers. We had the chance to ask Toni and Federico a few questions, so read on to make sure you don’t miss our double interview and visit the official F.R.T.B. website where you can buy the book, and more!
Why did you choose photography as a means of communication and expression?
Toni Brugnoli: It’s difficult to answer that question.
I think it was all very natural.
The first memory I have of photography is of my mother giving me a small digital compact camera for my promotion from school, and from that day on photography has been a constant.
I’ll try to explain myself better because I don’t want to be misunderstood, I was never interested in taking a “good picture” or being considered a photographer, but I loved the possibility of cataloguing everything I found interesting.
Then mobile phones with cameras became popular, that’s when my head completely exploded.
Federico Radaelli: The main reason I chose photography is first and foremost for the sense of freedom it gives and transmits to me.
Through this passion/work I have had the opportunity to travel to very remote and unusual places, expanding my field of vision and knowledge towards realities that I would otherwise have had difficulty in encountering.
All this feeds and pushes my curiosity, which is the fuel for my work.
Moreover, photography has the power to replicate infinitely something that only happens in a certain instant, it makes everything we experience and that surrounds us concrete.
Toni Brugnoli Federico Radaelli
Tell us how you met.
Toni Brugnoli: By chance.
Completely by chance.
One day I was wasting time on a Honda Dio forum (scooters of which we are both fans and owners) and I saw an ad from Federico who was looking for some parts for his scooter. I had them in my garage and decided to give them to him as a present.
We met and discovered we had many passions in common besides scooters.
Immediately a beautiful friendship was born.
Federico Radaelli: I met Toni last summer, I needed a spare part for the scooter I was developing at the seaside and I was looking for it online on a forum; he kindly offered to give it to me as a present and that’s when we met. We discovered that we are both photographers, have the same passions, the same photographic kit and shoot in a very similar way. If we decontextualise photos it is very difficult to tell if a photo was taken by him or by me.
We’ve only met once but we talk to each other a lot and it’s like we’re old friends, because we were in the same circles as kids.
Toni Brugnoli Federico Radaelli
Both of you have focused your work on urban realities and car tuning. What catches your eye and makes you say “I have to photograph this”?
Toni Brugnoli: Honestly, it’s a natural process, I can’t explain it.
But it’s very simple, I like something? I photograph it.
Everything else counts for little.
The important thing is to stop that image.
The thing that left me pleasantly surprised was to see that Federico was focused on the same research as me and above all with the same attitude in his working method.
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Federico Radaelli: I like to photograph “banal” things, in everyday life you can find many particular aspects that most of the time we overlook, in our haste or wrapped up in thoughts, having a camera in front of me filters these things and manages to make me see what is around me in a different, simpler way.
I mainly shoot on impulse, autofocus, point and shoot bang bang flash, after developing the rolls and letting some time pass I can focus on what I have shot.
This common passion gave birth to “F.R.T.B.”, a photographic project comparing and connecting Milan with Tokyo. In which city did you work and which aspects did you focus on?
Toni Brugnoli: My work is mainly developed in Milan and its province, simply because I am very afraid of flying. I am completely terrified of them.
Despite this, I have never felt limited in my research, I just try to look at the city through the eyes of a tourist.
Milan is a beautiful city, but above all, it is constantly moving, it cannot bore you… and if you squint you can also see the sea.
«I just try to look at the city through the eyes of a tourist.»
Federico Radaelli: I worked in Japan, where I lived part of 2019 and 2020, travelling far and wide.
Through social media, I became friends with the Japanese guys who live in the most rural part just outside Tokyo; Ibaraki and Chiba. Seeing this passion of mine for cars and motorbikes, but also for the Japanese automotive world, after a while they invited me to attend their rallies.
Bosozoku is a purely Japanese reality and in recent years, through the internet, it has become a little better known. It no longer has the violent stigma of the 80s and 90s where gangs fought over entire urban territories, but now older members or young people come together out of passion and nostalgia to relive those pure emotions.
Toni Brugnoli Federico Radaelli
Your collaboration led to the self-publication of a book. What was it like to see your work become something concrete and palpable?
Toni Brugnoli: While I’m answering these questions, the books are scattered I don’t know where in I don’t know which container… I will tell you that it is concrete and palpable only when I have them in my hands.
Joking aside, I am very happy to have been able to realise this project with Federico because I see my work exalted alongside his.
In short, my research takes on a complete dimension, and looking at Federico’s work completes the circle perfectly.
Federico Radaelli: Printing is always a pleasure, as a photographer I have always worked with film and I have always printed, having a darkroom here in London in which to print.
Touching the images with your hand is totally different from just having files, it makes our sacrifices concrete and very rewarding.
We are curious. Will your collaboration continue? What are your future plans?
Toni Brugnoli: Of course we will continue to collaborate, these days we are talking about a trip with many hours of airplane, I am already anxious honestly.
Federico Radaelli: Of course! We have just some interesting things boiling in the pot. Personally, the future is now a bit on hold, as I think it is for everyone. Viruses, lockdown, precariousness, all that is scary, but we must always have a focus on something or some project, always do research and be curious, keeping our minds active.
For me it is essential to travel, as soon as I can I will spend some time in America and from there I will probably move to live in Japan for a few years.
