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Background information
"In 1944, a communist dictatorship was established in Albania under Enver Hoxha. While there were initially alliances and cooperation with other communist states, the country isolated itself more and more from the rest of the world. At the end of the 1970s, the paranoid dictator had a good 600,000 bunkers built throughout the country. (cf. the photo book 'Concresco' by David GALJAARD, also offered by Café Lehmitz Photobooks). Hoxha claimed Albania was the richest country in the world and had to protect itself from its enemies. Meanwhile, the population ate little other than bread and beans. The purchase of cars was generally forbidden to the population. Therefore, the only cars on the streets of Albania were the party's car fleet, which consisted exclusively of models of the prestigious German brand Mercedes Benz. Accordingly, there were times when Albania was the only country in the world with a Mercedes density of 100%. There are no reliable statistics, but even today (2012) in Albania approximately every second car is a Mercedes Benz. (...) The Mercedes star evolved from the symbol of the unattainable and the ruthlessly ruling, communist power elite, to the ubiquitous symbol of the new, post-communist Albania striving towards the West." (© Fotohof, 2012)
Content
In 'Stars of Albania', Austrian photographer Matthias ASCHAUER's images draw attention to a very special phenomenon in Albania.
About Austrian photographer Matthias ASCHAUER
Photo books by Matthias ASCHAUER
- Book design
- Simon WALTERER
- Format
- German ed.! Gebundene Ausgabe ohne Schutzumschlag (wie erschienen) , 24 x 22 cm., 128 S., 81 S/W-Abb., deutsch-sprachiger Text - GERMAN TEXT ONLY! - English ed. to pre-order!