Albania, landscape

Today finally I have some time to develop pictures from my time in Albania. Still impressed with the landscapes, here are a few sceneries from the mountains near Stegopul, southeast of Gjirokastra...

The "Empalaos" in Valverde de la Vera

I acumulated a lot of pictures in the last weeks and I did not have time to post anything here, so now I have to do it step by step... During a day trip through the mountains of Gredos we stopped at Valverde de la Vera. Many years ago, I tried myself as a photographer taking pictures all over the iberic peninsula, but I never was satisfied with any photo of this ancient and sinister act of penitence taking place every year in the early morning of good friday: men dressing up as "empalaos" and walking the streets of the town at night... The men who are becoming “empalaos” normaly made a promise to the Christ of Vera Cruz, a venerated image in a small chapel outside the village. This tradition comes from an older substrate of celtic initiation rites, so the actual cientific consense; in our days, overlayered by the Christian tradition, the "empalao" will pray the Via Crucis on the streets of Valverde de la Vera, an enchanting medieval town on the southern slopes of the Sierra de Gredos in Extremadura. The dressing up of an “empalao” is a difficult and solemn procedure and has to be done with special care. Normally the closer family members are with the empalao during the moments before going out on his way through the cold morning air of Valverde. The first piece an "empalao" has to put on is a white pettycoat. The body and both arms are surrounded with heavy cords and a big, heavy wood mast is put in horizontal position, to form a cross with the man's body. The sinister outfit is completed with a thorn crown, clanking chains and two crossed swords at the back. The whole event is surrounded by mistery and anonymity. Nobody knows the names of the empalaos except their families and their closest friends and those who help them to get dressed. Silence reigns in the streets and everywhere while they are walking on their particular Via Crucis…

Pro Asyl - Aufnehmen statt abschieben

Illustrating the chapter on deportation of minorities to Kosovo is only a little contribution for an important cause: get the book "Aufnehmen statt Abschieben" (Admission instead of deportation) about exile, asylum and the commitment of civil societies issued by ProAsyl Germany. More information: www.vonloeper.de/PROASYL

A new year - and photography, once again

Almost every day I read something about photography it seems to me that in most cases, these writings don´t say nothing about the most simple thing, the nature of photography itself. They don´t say what photography is, perhaps they think that everybody already knows or should know... They don´t talk about the strange feelings some pictures may evoque, they don´t talk about simple things transported in all kind of photographs, they don´t talk about happiness or sadness, about surprise or complicity... Photography can be hard and direct, it also can be full of confusion, ambiguity and paradox simultanities, it is not essential in itself, like language or philosophy, but all matters expressed by or through photography can be and will be, depending on the view of the spectator.

Galicia, north west spain, december 2011

Some days at the atlantic coast in Galicia, north west Spain...

Barrio de Lucero, Madrid

Cities at night, fascinating, poetical and even mischievous sometimes. So interesting, thousands upon thousand of personal histories written in urban public space...

The Myth of Mount Triglav

Last week I had the opportunity to realize a photo essay around the myth of Mount Triglav in Slovenia. The Triglav is the highest peak of Slovenia and the Julian Alps. Its name. The “Three-headed” is surrounded by a complex mythology. Triglav is an ancient Slavic deity, often described as a man with three heads, representing the three kingdoms: heaven, earth and the underworld. There are many legends, one of the most popular is the tale of Zlatorog, the golden-horned chamois, mortally wounded by a young Slovenian hunter. Out of his blood grew beautiful red roses. Before the hunter found Zlatorog, he ate some of these flowers and was instantly healed. The approaching hunter in the end was blinded by the light from Zlatorog´s golden horns and fell of a cliff… But mount Triglav is not only important in legends and mythology, in recent history the mountain became a political and national symbol and is omnipresent in the life of all Slovenes. More histories from the realm of Triglav in the january 2012 issue of Alps Magazine...

Alp-X Caritas Irschenberg

This evening we showed the pictures of the Alp-X to all the participants. I am happy to announce today that you can see a selection of the photographs, together with an interesting story, in the march 2012 issue of Alps Magazine!

All Saints´ Day, Agatharied, Germany

All the years taking pictures of traditional rites, celebrations and fiestas - and today I realized that I never witnessed the processions in bavaria and austrian cementeries on All Saints´ and All Souls´ Day to commemorate the deceased who died in the hope of redemption and eternal life. Catholic tradition and theology constructed over the centuries a really all-embracing celebration, unifying all parts and aspects of the community of the church. Here are some pictures of the rosary and the benediction of the graves in the small village of Agatharied in Bavaria...

Irene from Granada...

Today I was searching in my negatives from last year and found this portrait of homeless Irene, dancing in front of the church of the Sacred Hear of Jesus in Granada, waiting for the move-out of the Holy Christ of the Gypsies, one of the most beloved processions of the holy week of this town.

Fiestas in honour of Our Lady of the Rosary, La Lastra del Cano, Ávila

My first time participating in these more traditional version of a village fiesta in La Lastra del Cano, Ávila! People dress up with their traditional suits, they prepare every detail weeks in avance, you can feel that everybody is looking forward to what will happen... The atmosphere is really intense and warm and the intimacy and familiarity go straight to the heart and at the end, as people leave once again, you wonder and may ask yourself what was going on in these three days, long and short by the same time... Soon more pictures on the site of Pena Lastra: www.lastracultural.blogspot.com!

Listen to the music: Voixmusik in Alps#7

Listen to the music: "Voixmusik - Hier spielt die Musik" in Alps#7 (05/2011),a reportage on the diversity of styles and the philosophy of so-called new or "young" alpine folk music by Dr. Claudia Teibler and illustrated with some of my photographs taken during the open air event "Night of the Alps" in Tegernsee. More: http://www.alps-magazine.com/

Jasmin´s and Cengiz´ Wedding Party

Thank you Jasmin, thank you Cengiz! Even though I had to finish my work as your photographer, I really enjoyed your wedding party! All the best!

Summertime - over again

Ephemeral summer - a season when everything is conceived as inmediate and spontaneous, in summer we are worshipping the present all day long... Summer offers us light, fertility, growth and, at least in our culture, a supposed break, a few weeks of easy living. And summer is although a summit, from there days get shorter, not only the dark days make us reflect on ourselves, perhaps it is more the summer season when we both look back and forth...

Some impressions of the Caritas Alp-X...

Here are some more pictures of the Alp-X with the children of the Caritas Kinderdorf Irschenberg. The story will be published in "Alps", spring 2012...

Alp-X Caritas Irschenberg

Congratulations to all of you! Hope to see you soon...

Crossing the Alps...

In the next days I have the opportunity to spend a lot of time with the adorable kids and their carers of the Caritas Children´s Village of Irschenberg crossing the Alps from north to south...

Suburban neighbourhood, Munich

I haven't blogged any photos in a while so I thought it would be time to start again with this one, taken yesterday in a suburban neighbourhood of Munich...

22th edition of the Oleg Kagan International Music Festival, Day 10

Last performance in Kreuth for 2011: Friedrich von Thun reading from the novel "1900: The Pianist on the Ocean", written by italian author Alessandro Barrico, accompanied by Max Neissendorfer at the piano, Karsten Gnettner at the contrabass and Stephan Eppinger playing drums.

Thanks to Helge Augstein, the organisation team and all the artists! I am looking forward to see you next year in Wildbad Kreuth...

22th edition of the Oleg Kagan International Music Festival, Day 9

Tonight: David Gray playing Mozart and Beethoven...