Story highlights The word "ghetto" is derived from a community in Venice, Italy

That area -- mostly empty now -- is where Jewish people were forced to live for centuries

(CNN) In preparation for the 500th anniversary of Italy's Venetian Ghetto, Ziyah Gafic scoured the 7-acre-wide part of the Cannaregio district where, for centuries, Jews were forced to live.

But all he found was an overwhelming silence -- an element that became central to the photographs he made there.

"It was summer in Venice, and the place was fairly deserted and quiet," Gafic said. "You can tell that very few people still live there."

There is a palpable void in each of Gafic's photos, a recognition of the vast silence of the world when crimes against humanity were committed. A mourning silence for a once-bustling community devastated by centuries of prejudice and finally the Holocaust. The photos are filled with wide spaces, usually featuring a lone character framed by an empty expanse.

Photographer Ziyah Gafic

"I do understand what it is like to be in a lockdown situation, so it was sadly an advantage during that assignment," said Gafic, a Bosnian who was 12 years old during the Siege of Sarajevo. "That (experience) really shaped my vision of the world, which I try to translate into imagery."

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