Homeland

The Republic of Moldova is one of the poorest countries in Europe. High unemployment and a lack of prospects characterise everyday life. Around one quarter of the population has left the country in the last twenty years for economic reasons. Those left behind are mostly people who are too old to go abroad to work – and the children of those who have made their way abroad. Maria Guțu is one of those children. The Moldovan photographer grew up with her grandparents in an isolated area in the north of the country. In Homeland, created between 2019 and 2023, she processes her memories of that time.

Dreamlike black and white pictures bring the memories to life: children in nature, classic costumes, men playing traditional music – that’s one side of it. Her series, however, is much more than a soft-focus retrospective from a sentimental point of view. Time and again, the protagonists’ gazes are lost in the distance, as if they are looking for something undefined. They stand perplexed in front of the camera, sometimes desperation and confusion mingling on their faces. Are tears flowing? Where are these people heading and what are their prospects? Guțu deliberately leaves these questions unanswered. What is striking is that her pictures encompass all generations: children, young people, adults – and they all seem to share a similar feeling. And even pictures devoid of people have a place in the series. A balloon in a puddle or a decapitated statue: what has happened – and will it go on? A strange heaviness and melancholy underlie everything.

In 2024, Guțu was the recipient of the 2024 Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award.