mirasimages

Berlin gives the impression of a humane place, built by people and for people, one that drew from its rich and often troubled history to create a unique synthesis of different eras and influences and integrate them into a coherent present. With its phenomenal arts scene, it’s edgier than any other city I know. It’s a city with a civic scene where far right protests are outnumbered by counter-protests five times; a city where people seem to have learned lessons from their past. It’s a city to learn from and to be in.

A country of extremes. Extreme wealth and glitz, extreme labour conditions, extreme heat - even sunsets are extreme, often dimmed by several thick layers of heat, humidity, pollution and sand. A country in which artificial snow and skiing are possible on a scorching 50 degrees Celsius day, in the era of climate change. Sometimes it feels like living on another planet, or like a preview of what the future might be like on this one. A society of desert tents and fishermen’s huts that turned in a very short period of time into a kingdom of concrete and steel. When the night hits, it looks like a 23rd century city with its ultramodern architecture and cool neon lights. At the same time, traditional values are cherished and very present in everyday life, but it’s also a society open to differences. Ramadan, the most special time of the year, brings the best in people into focus. It’s a period when people become more giving, caring and patient than usual, with iftars as the most important moments of the day, when locals share their meals with foreigners, and where everyone is welcome.

Saadiyat Island means Happiness Island. It's a beautiful place where turtles lay their eggs, while birds and people roam all along several kilometres of clean sandy beach. For Saadiyat to stay a happy island, though, they all have to be protected from the threatening trend of overdevelopment. The lesson we must learn, and learn quickly or else we'll be paying a terrible price, is that no true paradise can ever be artificial, and that no wonder of technology can ever replace those endangered turtles, the clean water and sand.

Paris is the most visited and perhaps the most photographed city in the world. For me the challenge was to show that Paris is much more than the predictable stereotype of love, light, and romantic inspiration. It is also a place, like any other place in the world, where people can be lonely and lost, where factory smoke greets sleepy workers and rain-soaked tired people drop coins in washing machines to do a load of laundry under neon lights. While not ignoring the undeniable beauty and charm of Paris, I want those who watch my pictures to see more than just iconic postcard landmarks, and embrace the notion that life, in all its diverse manifestations, should be the ultimate landmark.

This presentation is a set of photographs made in the capital of Cuba, Havana. Due to its complexities and contradictions, Cuba has become more than a place; in many ways, it is a postmodern and postcolonial myth, which has radically different meanings for different people. It has been photographed much, and precisely therein lies the challenge, for the representation of Cuba most often fails to go beyond the two extremes in interpretation, one that glorifies and romanticizes the achievements of Cuban revolution, and the other that dismisses it as a totalitarian, state-controlled and run, unsustainable country. The task is to work in between these polar opposites, acknowledging and embracing the contradictions and quirks of Cuba in order to bring forward the richness of the shared human experience.

A pre-Christmas (Christmas Day is celebrated on January 7 in Serbia) snowfall in Belgrade not only brings the city to a grinding halt, but also serves a reminder of how difficult life can be in this part of Europe. Almost a quarter century since the end of the war in Bosnia and twenty years after the Kosovo conflict and NATO bombing, there is still much soul searching happening against the backdrop of perpetual economic hardship, corruption, media control and popular protests, as well as high-end high-rise development in a city with poverty, inequality and crumbling infrastructure. Mostly, though, it is about each day as a new struggle for survival, with people rushing to take care of the pressing problems of today through the decaying cityscapes as constant reminders of the recent past.

Fridays For Future is a movement of school students who refuse to go to school on Fridays and who instead fight for action to prevent further climate breakdown. I’ve been documenting these protests since the beginning. In this photo essay the focus is on people. This is a story about us and our own survival. I am a former refugee. When I fled the civil war in Sarajevo, my home town, I left with only a suitcase in my hand. Having lived in many different countries afterwards, I am a perpetual migrant, more concerned with the world than with any particular place. My imagery speaks to the fragile human condition, which is exacerbated by a real sense of urgency in the age of climate change. I was able to get a glimpse of climate emergency through personal experience. When my Havana home was flooded a few years ago, I found myself helpless. I remember the water was rising. We ran to our child’s bed to grab him and carry him to safety. My life shifted overnight. No longer concerned with making images, my priorities became salvaging the most necessary possessions and fleeing from the disaster scene. Seven people died in Havana that night as the result of the flooding, and many others lost everything they had. Now I see the waters rising around me everywhere – physically as well as metaphorically. Climate change has affected me, and it is affecting us all. Motivated by the desire for my two children to live in a just and livable world, I no longer hesitate to focus my lens on what people are doing and the spaces they inhabit. I use my camera to frame my subjects, to highlight their political expressions and human emotions in the context of events that are radically changing our lives. I'm hoping that together we can change the world.