CHARON ~

Matthias Leupold

In parallel to a long-term documentary film project, Eric Berg and I developed a workshop series VJOSA, THE LAST UNTAMED RIVER IN EUROPE, in which mostly photography students but also students of communication design and illustration and teachers explored the south of Albania photographically and illustratively for a week at a time. In 2019, Abi Sehu had the wonderful traditional guesthouse in Bual near Përmet found, run by Kristaq, Flora and Mandi Cullufe, which has only had electricity for a few years. The house is a few hundred metres above the Vjosa.

Just the walk up the mountains to our home every evening was very inspiring for all of us. Enis Shehu accompanied us on every field trip, translated between the family and us at dinner and often we talked late into the night over raki and red wine, getting to know the wonderful hospitality in Albania. He drove us to the thermal springs of Llixhat e Bënjës and other places of interest in the area. Besjana Gurj from the NGO EcoAlbania visited us in Përmet and introduced us to the problems of dam building on the Vjosa, this mysterious river which is very revered in Albania, so much so that to this day young girls are named after it. Serveta and Vjosa from Kutal took us to their original village and the neighbouring village of Kosine - Demir, Lola, Irisa Murataj hosted us Kutë. Our annual return in autumn leads over the years to a beautiful familiarity that has lasted until today. This catalogue is a visual thank you to all those who have supported this project in Albania. Many thanks to Boris Wiesmayr and Martin Kruszka both at Unumodo e.V. and the Malzfabrik in Berlin-Tempelhof as well as Michael Kwast and Uwe Schröder in the administration of the University of Europe for Applied Sciences who made the exhibition 2023 possible in the framework of the European Month of Photography.

@matthiasleupoldberlin www.leupoldfilmproduction.berlin