Albania
Morning star
The beginning of the Albanian feminist movement in the early XX century was relatively late compared to other western developed countries. The name of the movie refers to the first society of women, called “Morning Star”, was founded in January 1909, by the Sevasti and Parashqevi Qiriazi.
This short movie refers to the spatial narrations, messages in public spaces which often unconsciously and imperceptibly preserve patriarchal patterns. In Tirana, a city where there is relatively more freedom and openness to individuality, compared to the towns and villages of Albania, statues of male heroes dominate anyway. The only female statue that has been inaugurated in 2022, is the statue of Queen Geraldine, as wife of King Zogu. The role of women in history, their importance for the development of the country and it's culture must be redefined and make visible in the public space.
The project refers to urban anthropology, but also to the relations of power shaped in the landscape. We admire (in ALbania) the beautiful views, the mountains, forgetting about the situation of women there, forgetting that in small towns, in and behind mountain villages in Albania, there are still many women whose rights to decide about themselves are not respected. And, in terms of land, typical and common here, they cannot inherit a family's land inheritance.
