There are moments in history that cannot be fully captured by words, fragments of time that, once passed, remain etched only in memory… and sometimes, in photographs.

GOCAT (Gallery of Contemporary Art Tirana), with the support of Mane Foundation, inaugurated the exhibition “Shot / Reverse Shot”, an emotional visual journey that bridges past and present, foreign and local perspectives, memory and identity.

This exhibition is not just a gallery of images, it is a dialogue. A visual conversation between Barry Lewis, the acclaimed British photographer who documented Albania during its turbulent transition from dictatorship in the early ‘90s, and four Albanian artists who respond through their lens.

Retrospective

In 1990 and 1991, at a time when Albania was still hidden behind the iron curtain, Barry Lewis entered the country disguised as an archaeologist, his camera partially concealed, his presence tolerated only with great suspicion. What he captured were not just photographs, but deep visual testimonies of a society on the edge of change. His work became the acclaimed books Albania in Isolation and Albania in Transition.

These images show more than a political shift they reveal a population awakening from decades of isolation, still bearing the weight of the past, and uncertainty of the future.

Now, over three decades later, Lewis returns to Albania. Not just in person but in image. And his work is no longer alone. Through the curatorial vision of Burim Myftiu, the exhibition creates a space for a reverse shot an artistic and ethical response by Albanian photographers and filmmakers of today, including Roland Tasho, one of the few local photographers who also documented that same era from within.

The title “Shot / Reverse Shot” borrows from cinema, a technique where one-character looks, and another responds, though their gazes never directly meet. The cut mediates. And meaning forms in the space in-between.

Curator Burim Myftiu explains:

“This is more than an exhibition, it is an anthropological study of the Albanian spirit in the 1990s. These aren’t just photographs. They are deep works of art. Lewis traveled the world with them, and now they return home. For younger generations born after the fall of communism, this is a chance to visually connect with the past of their parents, stories they may have only heard until now.”

Barry Lewis, present at the opening, shared his reaction to the transformation he found in Albania:

“It felt like I returned to a completely different place. So much has changed… so much life everywhere. At times, it felt like there were more tourists than locals on the streets of Tirana.”

With the support of Mane Foundation, the exhibition is free and open to the public until September 7th, affirming the Foundation’s continued mission to make culture accessible to all, and to support initiatives that inspire, educate, and connect.

In an era overwhelmed by images, where photography is often reduced to content, “Shot / Reverse Shot” brings us back to the ethical gaze. The slow gaze. The human gaze.