Between Fears and Hope, Fabrice Dekoninck

From 1992 to 1995, in the heart of Europe, the nationalist project of ‘Greater Serbia’ led Bosnia-Herzegovina into a fratricidal war that culminated in the Srebrenica genocide. The Dayton Agreement will freeze the country in a precarious peace based on an ethnic partition of the country.

Since then, tensions between ethnic and religious communities have remained vivid, fuelled by  nationalist rhetorics that exploits memory to the detriment of justice and reconciliation, thus posing a real risk to peace.

In photography, Fabrice Dekoninck takes us on a journey of immersion in the memory of the war. For more than two years, he has explored, in its most intimate aspects, the memory of those who survived the siege of Sarajevo, the ethnic cleansing of the Prijedor region and the genocide in Srebrenica. Like an anthropologist of memory, he has documented, on the very places where the events took place, the memory of the witnesses and the serious traumas that are passed on between generations.

This work paints a portrait of a Bosnian society that remains mired in its own past. Fortunately, hope remains. The photographer also met members of civil society, artists or activists, who have decided not to carry the burden of a collective memory imposed on them and who still believe in the possibility of a multi-ethnic ideal in a country at peace.

This crowdfunding campaign is now over. The book is available to order on Hemeria.com here

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The photographer Fabrice Dekoninck takes us on an immersion into the memory of the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, meeting witnesses and survivors. Through their stories, he confronts the weight of this memory and its impact on the Bosnian society today.

Obsessed by traces, he tirelessly surveys the very sites where the crimes were committed, detention and execution sites and former mass graves. Spread over almost three years, his work is similar to that of an anthropologist of memory. With this book, he is at the epicentre of the very essence of photography: to make the invisible visible. Through photography, he intends to fight against revisionism and negationism.

I remember my first trip to Srebrenica in February 2020. Even before arriving in the city, I am stunned by the landscape that unfolds before my eyes. Everywhere, the stigma of violence and hatred. Yet I had prepared myself for a long time. I had read the accounts of the witnesses and immersed myself in the archives of the International Criminal Court. But nothing could prepare me for the raw reality of the genocide. I feel everything, the hatred of the murderers and the suffering of the victims. Everything here is latent, palpable, horribly present.

 

 

 


The context

After five long years of war, more than 100,000 dead and 1.2 million displaced, and after the genocide in Srebrenica finally awakened the conscience of the international community, the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina ended with the signing of the Dayton Accords in November 1995.

These agreements, although intended to be temporary, continue to govern the country today, allowing ethno-nationalist politicians to remain in power, instrumentalising the memory of the war and exacerbating tensions between communities for the sole purpose of staying in power. The ‘Dayton peace’ and the arrangements it imposes have created a poisonous climate in which everything seems capable of becoming violent again.

In the autumn of 2021, the ethno-nationalist leader of Republika Srpska announced his intention to have the local parliament pass a bill allowing the Serb entity to withdraw from the central authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina in all matters of defence, health, tax administration and justice. This is a unilateral violation of the Dayton Accords, and threatens a new armed conflict.

Thirty years after the start of the conflict, tensions have never been higher and resentment and hatred between ethnic communities have never been greater, against a backdrop of corruption, political mismanagement and rising nationalism throughout the country.

 

 


How the book is organized?

For nearly three years, the photographer stayed for long periods in Bosnia and Herzegovina where he built trustful relationships with numerous witnesses. Across Europe, he also met several foreign witnesses (UN soldiers, ICTY investigator, writers and journalists) present in Bosnia during the war. All witnesses opened the doors of their memory in the most sincere and honest way, allowing the author to collect a unique set of testimonies on what the memory of war is all about.

The book is first and foremost a photography book, mixing staged portraits and reportage images on the very places where the events took place. Most of the work is done with film cameras (35 mm and medium format), delivering a  blend of black and white and color images.

The book is organized around 3 geographical chapters: Srebrenica, Kozarac and Sarajevo. Each chapter is introduced by the author who shares his own thoughts and emotions in relation to his own experience. He also gives the floor to a few guests who address post-war recurring themes: truth, justice and memorialization (how to deal with the legacy of the past?).

The preface is written by Philippe Simon, a former French war correspondent who shared the daily life of a Bosnian family in Sarajevo during the siege of the city.

The book will be available in English and French. Depending on the results of the crowdfunding campaign, the book may also be published in Bosnian, available only to residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

 

 


Chapter 1: Kozarac (Prijedor region)

Every summer, the Bosnian diaspora in the Prijedor region joins those who decided not to flee the country after the ethnical cleansing of spring 92 (July 2022)


Chapter 2: Sarajevo

Children play, Sarajevo


Chapter 3: Srebrenica

“Through photography and interviews, I try to give a concrete reality to the genocide, in order to extract it from the simple statistics that inexorably condemn it to oblivion.” 
Fabrice Dekoninck  

 


 

In front of the ruined former high school, young footballers from Kozarac, mostly Bosniaks, play a football match against their Serb neighbours from Omarska (September 2022)

 


Who is Fabrice Dekoninck? How did he work?

Fascinated by History, by the stakes linked to the preservation of memory and to the way it is collectively built, Fabrice Dekoninck first worked on the soldiers of the Great War, work that he exhibited as part of the Centennial mission at the Verdun Memorial in France. When he decided to devote himself entirely to photography, he became interested in the war in the former Yugoslavia.

Through interviews and testimonies, drawing on the thread of confidences patiently collected, he has been documenting for three years the traces of the massacres that led to the tragic deaths of thousands of victims between 1992 and 1995.

Based on his readings, on the testimonies of survivors and journalists present in the field at the time, as well as on the minutes of the ICTY and in particular the long work of Jean-René Ruez, head of the investigation group on the crimes of Srebrenica, he has succeeded in bringing to light the traces of the past, in breaking the silence and thus in paying homage to all those who have disappeared. In doing so, he frees himself from the manipulations of memory still at work in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Quoting Maurice Genevoix: “There is no death. I can close my eyes, I will have my paradise in the hearts that remember“.

Between Fears and Hope will be his second book, following the 2017 publication of Comme On Peut (Creaphis, France) in support of the eponymous exhibition, mixing portraits and landscapes with the words of the French writer Maurice Genevoix issued from Ceux de 14.

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How to establish a truth on the scale of a nation when the “war of memories” continues to rage, when the words of the revisionists and the words of denial are expressed freely, and when, 30 years later, Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian children are taught revisited histories, thus weakening any process of reconciliation?

 

 

Serbian Orthodox Church illegally built on the land of 78-year-old Fata Orlovic, “Nana Fata”. After 20 years of lengthy court proceedings, including the European Court of Human Rights, she finally succeeded in having the building destroyed in June 2021 (march 2021)

 


If the crowdfunding campaign is a success, the book will be published by Hemeria French publisher.

Hemeria supports photographers who are committed to long-term projects. After hosting in 2020 the work of the VII Foundation on peace (Imagine: reflections on peace) gathering photographs and essays on Vietnam, Lebanon, Northern Ireland, Rwanda, Colombia and Bosnia, yesterday and today, the publishing house has supported the project of the documentary photographer Maryam Ashrafi on Syrian and Iraqi Kurdistan and the essential role of women.

With this new book by Fabrice Dekoninck, Hemeria continues to participate in the indispensable work of memory and truth that we owe to all those who struggle to live in a fairer, more egalitarian, freer world.


Exhibitions

2022
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Nantes, France > Cosmopolis (festival des solidarités), thématique « Transformons le monde »
03 – 13 November 2022

 

2023
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Sarajevo, Bosnia > National Gallery
April – May 2023

Srebrenica, Bosnia > Memorial Center
July – December 2023

 


Press review

  • Interview by French independent media BLAST
  • Article published in Ouest France about Nantes’exhibition
  • Interview by BIRN (the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network) independent media

 

Prints available as rewards


 

 

 

 


>> Photos available in B&W size 20×25 / 30×40 / Photo A also available in 50×60 [125 € in 20×25 – 300 € in 30×40]


>> Photos in color available in size 30×40 [200 €]

 


>> Photos in B&W available in size 37×37 [650 €]


>> Photos in color available in size 50×50 [900 €]


>> Photos in color available in size 50×60 [950 €]


>> Photos in B&W available in size 50×60 [1000 €]

 

Considerazioni

€45

The book (special price) 49€ when released Free delivery in France - your name in the book

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€80

2 books (a 18% discount on final price) Free delivery in France - your name in the book

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€125

Gelatin silver print 20x25 cm B&W signed, not numbered (+ 1 book) Choose from photos A, B, C, D, E, F, G Your name in the book Printed by Fred Goyeau on Bergger Prestige variable CB Baryta paper.

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200 €

Color Silver print 30x40 cm signed, not numbered (+ 1 book) Choose from photos H, I, J, K, L Your name in the book Print made by Marc Mupson on RC paper (resin coated) Kodak Endura Premier N (matte)

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€300

Gelatin silver print 30x40 cm B&W signed, not numbered (+ 1 book) Choose from photos A, B, C, D, E, F, G Your name in the book Printed by Fred Goyeau on Bergger Prestige variable CB Baryta paper.

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500 €

The book + a 30x40 color print + a 30x40 B&W Gelatin silver print signed, not numbered B&W print > images A, B, C, D, E, F, G Color print > images H, I, J, K, L Your name in the book

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€650

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Gelatin silver print 37x37 cm B&W signed and numbered (+ 1 book) To be chosen from the photos M, N, O, P Each print numbered from 1 to 7 (edition of 7 copies) - CE transport not included Printed by Fred Goyeau on Bergger Prestige variable CB baryta paper Your name in the book

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900 €

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Silver color art print 50x50 cm signed and numbered (+ 1 book offered) Art print to choose from photos K, R, S, T Delivered with a certificate of authenticity Each print numbered from 1 to 7 (edition of 7 copies) - CE transport not included Print produced by Marc Upson on RC paper (resin coated) Kodak Endura Premier N (mat) Your name in the book

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€950

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Silver color art print 50x60 cm signed and numbered (+ 1 book offered) Art print to choose from photos U or V Delivered with certificate of authenticity Print numbered from 1 to 7 (edition of 7 copies) - CE transport not included Print made by Marc Upson on RC paper (resin coated) Kodak Endura Premier N (mat) Your name in the book

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€1000

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Gelatin silver B&W art print 50x60 cm signed and numbered (+ 1 book offered) Art print to choose from photos A, AB, AC, W, X, Y and Z Issued with a certificate of authenticity Each print numbered from 1 to 7 (edition of 7 copies) Print produced by Fred Goyeau on Bergger Prestige variable CB baryta paper Transport not included

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€1500

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Gelatin silver print EXCEPTIONAL DIPTYQUE 58x20 cm PIECE "SREBRENICA HILLS" 2 B&W prints assembled for 1 art print signed and numbered + floating box frame with marie-louise Art print numbered from 1 to 5 - 5 copies only available Delivered with certificate of authenticity 2 books offered 5 contributors maximum - transport France included Print produced by Fred Goyeau on baryté paperBergger Prestige variable CB Your name in the book

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Business Pack / 25 books + a presentation of the book by Fabrice Dekoninck + your logo in the book - contact us to receive all the offers proposed to the partners (with possibility of tax exemption if purchase of art prints).

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Name Donate Amount Date
Salima Yakhlef 45 October 08, 2023
Pascal MIGNERY 95 August 19, 2023
Elmina Mujovic 45 July 13, 2023
Adrien Touminet 45 June 09, 2023
Anonymous 30 May 23, 2023
Dick Vestdijk 22 May 07, 2023
Anonymous 5 000 January 31, 2023
Camille Bessard 125 March 24, 2023
Ersan Memic 60 March 18, 2023
Anonymous 1 012 March 07, 2023
Pierre Raimbault 45 March 02, 2023
Lejla Menkovic 95 February 27, 2023
Nermina Malkic 75 February 27, 2023
Francesco Premi 215 February 25, 2023
Benjamin Jung 45 February 24, 2023
Anonymous 75 February 23, 2023
Caroline Soualle 45 February 22, 2023
Kseniya Kravtsova 45 February 21, 2023
Jasmin Merdanovic 95 February 20, 2023
Catherine Mano 45 February 11, 2023
Minella Mujdzic 57 February 08, 2023
philippe simon 125 February 06, 2023
Alexandre Melin 80 February 04, 2023
Amina Adams 75 February 03, 2023
Etienne Rousseau 57 February 01, 2023
Kristina Koch 53 February 01, 2023
frederic grosjean 45 January 31, 2023
Anonymous 57 January 31, 2023
Süreye Betül Canakci 53 January 31, 2023
Bruno Labarbere 45 January 29, 2023
Enes Krkic Zlata Mujagic 212 January 28, 2023
Guy Lutringer 900 January 28, 2023
Safia BALIC 80 January 28, 2023
Selma Sendo Ljevakovic 60 January 27, 2023
Andrei Nikolaev 20 January 27, 2023
Jef Derréal 80 January 27, 2023
Srđan Šušnica 60 January 26, 2023
oriane perreaux 57 January 26, 2023
Yvan Gouttebelle 515 January 26, 2023
Cendrine Du welz 57 January 26, 2023
Anne-Sophie Batty 62 January 26, 2023
Natacha Guermonprez 45 January 26, 2023
jean francois CHRISTOPHE 45 January 26, 2023
Paul-Emmanuel MOULIN 45 January 26, 2023
Ulfeta Hodzic 45 January 26, 2023
Dinela Hodzic 45 January 26, 2023
Vahid Suljic 45 January 26, 2023
Dzemil Hodzic 45 January 26, 2023
Alexandra Portmann 95 January 25, 2023
Anonymous 60 January 25, 2023
Anonymous 50 January 25, 2023
Udruzenje "OGBIH-JD" 115 January 25, 2023
Alem Sabanovic 80 January 24, 2023
Denis McCready 45 January 24, 2023
Anonymous 112 January 23, 2023
Gregory Dinner 60 January 23, 2023
Anonymous 95 January 22, 2023
Sanela BALIC 45 January 22, 2023
Sanela BALIC 45 January 22, 2023
Azra Dzafic 5 January 22, 2023
Sylvain Demange 125 January 22, 2023
Anonymous 110 January 22, 2023
Adnan Mahmutovic 95 January 22, 2023
Ajdin Grcić 57 January 21, 2023
Francesca Delli Quadri 95 January 21, 2023
Haris Kadic 95 January 21, 2023
Juliette Layet 45 January 20, 2023
PHILIPPE RAYBAUDI 45 January 19, 2023
Senad Mujic 60 January 18, 2023
Muamer Mustafić 54 January 18, 2023
Emina Ademovic 45 January 18, 2023
Jose Antonio Sanchez Manzano 54 January 17, 2023
Ombeline Duprat 45 January 16, 2023
Felix John Attard 75 January 15, 2023
Frederic Giot 125 January 15, 2023
Hugo Taisne 80 January 14, 2023
Alain Combémorel 45 January 13, 2023
Ismael Riazul 125 January 13, 2023
Anonymous 59 January 13, 2023
Rachel Lemlijn 54 January 12, 2023
Marie Claire Soualle 45 January 12, 2023
Claudia Heinermann 54 January 11, 2023
Paula Sousa 89 January 11, 2023
Arnaud Vaulerin 45 January 10, 2023
Olivier d’Angély 200 January 09, 2023
Zlatan Mujagic 54 January 09, 2023
Satko Mujagic 209 January 09, 2023
Fabrizio Minini 54 January 07, 2023
Emmanuel Soyez 54 January 04, 2023
Philippe Kalmbach 509 January 03, 2023
Kristian Skeie 60 December 26, 2022
Guillaume ANCEL 45 December 26, 2022
Matthieu Defrance 54 December 25, 2022
stephanie rousel 45 December 25, 2022
Hira Aftab 54 December 23, 2022
Admira Fazlić 54 December 23, 2022
Stéphanie Leroux 45 December 23, 2022
Melisa Merdanovic 60 December 23, 2022
Arry Van Weyenbergh 54 December 22, 2022
Audrey Toëlen 54 December 22, 2022
Jennie Blythe 54 December 22, 2022
Ajla KUDUZOVIC 45 December 22, 2022
Patrick Bories 45 December 22, 2022
Sarah Palic 80 December 22, 2022
Charlotte Wilson 54 December 22, 2022
patrick wack 45 December 22, 2022
Alisa Fetahovic 140 December 22, 2022
Emmanuelle Sansoe 215 December 22, 2022
Michel Villée 134 December 22, 2022
Elida Besic 89 December 22, 2022
Didier Aujouannet 45 December 22, 2022
Doris Sessolo 54 December 21, 2022
Doris Sessolo 134 December 21, 2022
Adis Mildon 60 December 21, 2022
Dubois Daniel Léo 45 December 21, 2022
Marc CAPELLE 50 December 21, 2022
Sophie et Benjamin Courtier 54 December 21, 2022
Cécile Bresson 45 December 21, 2022
Eric Espinosa 134 December 21, 2022
guillaume origoni 45 December 21, 2022
Anonymous 300 December 19, 2022

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