After years of photographing systems — from energy to extraction — I turned inward.

Genea Illogica began with dislocation: becoming a father as a relationship ended, and the search for roots where none existed.

In the forests of San Vi’, between mist and silence, I found echoes of Proust’s idea that the soul is a dark forest intertwined with genealogical trees.

I had the privilege of documenting an unprecedented event in the history of the Vatican fro National Geographic: the first-ever concert in St. Peter’s Square, illuminated by Europe’s largest drone performance.

Critical Minerals – Geography of Energy, published in NRC. The project is my latest global investigation into the material foundations of the green transition.

Critical Minerals – Geography of Energy, published in The Economist’s 1843 Magazine. The project is my latest global investigation into the material foundations of the green transition. From South America to Southeast Asia and Central Africa, the project documents the extraction and geopolitics behind lithium, cobalt, nickel, and other minerals essential to the clean-energy revolution. Through photography and field reporting, the work reveals the environmental, political, and ethical tensions driving a new global gold rush.

In a new cover story for TIME Magazine, I followed the production line of Worldcoin’s Orb, a device designed to prove our humanity in an era of advanced AI. The article explores the tensions between privacy, identity, and digital life as Tools for Humanity races to verify millions through iris scans. I documented the project across continents—from cautious optimism in Seoul to the Orb’s high-stakes launch in the U.S.—highlighting the uneasy balance between innovation and control. Read More.

“Le photographe Davide Monteleone a parcouru le monde pour documenter l'exploitation des terres rares, ces métaux clés pour le développement de technologies de pointe et la transition écologique, devenus objets de toutes les convoitises”

“De l’extraction du lithium chilien à celle du nickel d’Indonésie en passant par le cobalt congolais, le photographe Davide Monteleone explore les sites dans lesquels les industries de la tech viennent puiser les ressources indispensables à la transition énergétique.”

Excited to share that I’ve been interviewed in the latest issue of Tutti Fotografi, where I talk about my work, my approach to reportage, and the evolution of my projects—from Critical Minerals to Dusha.

Thrilled to announce that my project Critical Minerals: The Geography of Energy is featured in a 24-page publication in the latest issue of GEO Germany!

Critical Minerals MUDEC exhibition review on National Geographic Italia

The Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore reviewed the exhibition Critical Minerals at Mudec in Milan.