My Greek Village

My Greek Village is a metaphor for an idealised place that embodies much of what we aspire to in life: interpersonal relationships, closeness, clarity, reliability, family and identity. It represents the loss of many values, as we have seen and lamented in our globalized world. The photographs are an expression of the sorrow we feel when familiar and cherished objects, structures and rituals disappear from our lives.

The book sharpens our view of the transience of established structures and gives us hope that we will succeed in handling our cultural heritage in a respectful, protective manner.My Greek Village makes us reflect on the most important, authentic values in life, because this Greek village is not just in Greece; it is a place that exists everywhere in our globalized world, a place of longing that needs to be seen and preserved, protected and defended, and a place that exists, above all, in our hearts.My Greek Village is the English and Greek edition of the original German title Mein griechisches Dorf by Wolfgang Bernauer.

Autorentext
Wolfgang Bernauer is a Swiss ophthalmologist, author and photographer. He has been interested in science since childhood: his father was a chemist and his uncle invented polarising filters. The exposed glass plates and old equipment from the family collection were his first inspiration for photographic experiments. After studying medicine, he trained in photography and produced his first art history reports. His work is characterised by a deep respect and keen interest in the cultural and social life of people living in the peripheral regions of the Alps and in Greece. His studies and photographs focus on traditional life, living conditions, the calendar of festivals and old craft techniques. A stay of several weeks in Olymbos, located in the mountainous region of Karpathos, initiated the long-term project My Greek Village in 1996. Another major project is called Alpine Life. Through the conscious inclusion of the cultural environment, the portrait studies take on a contemporary historical dimension. Wolfgang Bernauer has published numerous articles and images in print and online media. These include: ColorFoto, fotoforum, Foto-Magazin, Photographie, Reise und Kultur and Schwarzweiss.