The Lost Enchiridion of the Fergana Valley (2017-ongoing)

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Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Kyrgyz areas of the Fergana Valley have been subject to interethnic clashes in recent decades, between Kyrgyz, Tajiks and Uzbeks. Uzbek and Tajik minorities are subject to systemic discrimination. These events, tainted by a post-imperialist landscape, have blurred the line between division and unity in relation to everyday life; they are seldom visible. Following seven trips to Kyrgyzstan between 2017 and 2022, alongside both extensive field research, discussions and readings, this visual amalgamation refrains from any factual purity. They exist as segments entangled in one common history governed by the legacy of an empty promise and corruption. This is over half a decade’s worth of bearing witness to people putting on shoes like watching a glacier move. As much an observation as it is a meditation. The camera is an opportunity to reach out via kinship and reciprocity. Where is the line between division and unity?

 

Such questions become starting points, where the quotidian can be unpicked and contemplated; to capture a feeling, to convey the bond that occurs off camera. How does one encompass it all and depict such complexity and nuance with tranquility, dignity and respect, without exaggerating the tragedy nor undermining it?