Hope, etched in black and white

[Enri Canaj]

The Albanian-born Magnum lensman Enri Canaj, himself a erstwhile migrant, turns his lens connected a decennary of displacement successful his caller exhibition, “Say Goodbye Before You Leave,” opening astatine the Beehive taste space successful cardinal Athens (10 Metsovou). 

Featuring 40 black-and-white photographs, galore being shown publically for the archetypal time, the bid chronicles the years 2014 to 2022, pursuing refugees and migrants crossed Balkan borders, camps, and their eventual resettlement successful Europe. 

“Their contiguous mirrors my past,” Canaj said, describing however his ain travel informed the work. 

His images – spanning from the Moria campy connected Lesvos to the streets of Northern Europe – represent some the despair of exile and the resilience of those rebuilding their lives. Among the astir striking stories is that of Ahmad, a young Afghan lad caring for his disabled mother, aboriginal photographed successful Sweden, a symbol of survival and quiescent dignity. 

“Even successful chaos,” Canaj noted, “optimism and humanity endure.” The accumulation will tally until March 31, 2026.