Paris-born and award-winning photojournalist Guillaume Herbaut
created a series titled 2/7 Shkodra, which recorded a community in northern
Albania where people do not leave their homes in fear of a 15th
Century death code that sparked a blood feud between families.
The Kanun, a
civil code, encouraged revenge, vendettas, by killing anyone who had a feud
with another. The code stated that everyone had a “civil” duty to target and
kill the culprit and their family. 2000 women lost their husbands due to the “settling
of scores.” Meanwhile, an entire generation of illiterate and psychologically
scarred children who still live in fear of being killing. As of 2013, there
were reports of over 120 blood feud children who remained in hiding. The
community still has families who continued to grow vegetables in a 100 sq.
meter yard and eat from livestock that lives inside their home waiting for
someone to succeed in killing them.
Herbaut's square-format compositions are colorful with dark and intimidating content. His attention to the colors is paired with the dingy and secluded surroundings. Herbaut focuses on the simplicity and minimalistic aspects of his subjects lives.
This story is horrific yet there is an element in Herbaut's work that feels staged. For example, the woman and child above are both holding knives and placed against a brightly colored background. The girl stands on her bed, almost anticipating an invasion, meanwhile, the woman holds her knife in a protective manner that seems un-natural.
No comments:
Post a Comment