Documentary photography forum:
21. April 2009 – 25. July 2009
Alban Kakulya / Yann Mingard
East of a New Eden
East of a New Eden is a photographic document of a journey between the Baltic and Black Sea along the external border of the European Union. To better control immigration from the East, the European Union has stepped up its border protection efforts along this boundary. The Swiss photographers Alban Kakulya and Yann Mingard set off on a journey along the border equipped with GPS navigation devices. Kakulya left from the port of Constanza in Romania at the southern end of the 1,600-kilometre-long section of the border, while Mingard started in Narva in the north of Estonia. They met in Poland six weeks later. Their precise location was 51º 38’ 49.5“ N – 23º 32’ 14.3“ E.
Along their journey – with border patrols, by car or snowmobile, or on foot – they photographed landscapes on the edge of the European Union. Whenever they took a picture they noted their coordinates to show exactly where the border was. People crossing the border to the Schengen area are closely monitored. Kakulya and Minguard documented the complex security infrastructure used to do so: infrared cameras, watchtowers and customs posts.
Their award-winning exhibition, East of a New Eden, has been shown in Europe and the United States. In autumn 2009 an illustrated book by the same name will be published by Lars Müller Publishers.
www.albankakulya.com; www.yannmingard.com
From 21 April to 25 July 2009, the Forum for Documentary Photography at CoalMine in Winterthur is showing Arktis, an exhibition of work by Subhankar Banerjee.
Essay Alban Kakulya ENEssay Alban Kakulya DE
