Pjetër Rraboshta was born in Shkodra, Albania, in 1917. His father was a craftsman in a traditional clothing factory. Rraboshta approached photography by working in Kel Marubi’s studio, where he worked until he opened his business between 1942 and 1943. The studio was called Foto Rraboshta and was located on the main street of the city.
Rraboshta mainly portrayed the middle class and the poorest of society. ”His gift was to show reality as it is. His subjects convey the essence of an authentic and at the same time difficult lifestyle ”, writes Zef Paci, curator of the exhibition on display at the Marubi National Museum of Photography in Shkoder. “In his photos we do not find the sense of optimism heralded by the regime of the time. The happiness we see is the eternal happiness that exists side by side with sadness ”.
In his photos nothing is staged, they are moments of everyday life captured on the streets, in the courtyards of houses, in the church, during weddings, on the beach or in the snow. “The stories he focused on are the minor ones, which they come from below. He is not far from his subjects, he feels part of them ”.
In 1970 Rraboshta ceded his photographic archive of 16,196 film images to the state. He died in Scutari in 1987.
The exhibition will run until 10 October 2021.
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