Andrea Lavezzaro – Small country, small camera

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03.02.2017

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“‘Yesterday is but today’s memory, and tomorrow is today’s dream,’ the famous Lebanese poet, Khalil Gibran, once wrote.

It was my first trip to the Middle East. I only had twelve days, not much money and no great expectations. Because Lebanon is rather small, it was possible to travel all around the country within that time frame, and discover all the regional diversity.

Most of the differences could be traced back to the behaviour of the population – whether, for example, a place was predominantly inhabited by Christians or Muslims. However, there were also other contradictions in this small country where, on the one hand, women after often completely covered up, on the other hand, are often victims of the widely accepted, absurd plastic surgery market. It’s a country where, as a tourist, I could travel around perfectly safely, but where there were soldiers with machine guns on every corner, and tanks were not unusual – like a small reminder that not far from there, a big and dark battle is currently taking place…

It was the first time I was only travelling with a smartphone camera, and I must admit that it made the photographic aspect of the trip much easier, and I didn’t miss having a larger camera – even during the night. During the day, with the harsh light of the late October summer sun, the colours were captured magnificently.

Lebanon continues to confuse me, but maybe that is a reflection of the country. Somewhere between here and there, somewhere between dream and reality, as Gibran said.” Andrea Lavezzaro