The Apa series of photographs was taken on the banks of the Dniester River in the Transnistrian region of Moldova, where the white water lilies are currently endangered. The series telles the story of a former biology teacher, Elena Nikolaevna, who used to go to the river every day to feed the fish with biscuits. When she was a child, her father liked to tell her that about 300 million years ago, on the banks of the Dniester River, there lived a particular species of amphibian, neither aquatic nor terrestrial, they were very discreet: the Labyrinthodontia Buccellatum. One day, Elena discovered an egg of the species on the banks of the river. She names it Apa, which means “water” in Moldavian. Every Friday she collects waste with this creature, whom she considers her child, at the river’s edge to make magic water lily mats with him.
Apa
Dutca-Sidorenko (collectif)
Born in 1995 in Bender (Moldova) and Gornyak (Russia)
Live and work in Bender (Moldova)
Carolina Dutca works with photography, video, installation and text. Her artistic projects are linked to the theme of relationships, home, nature and memory. In collaboration with Valentin Sidorenko, she plays with time. They recall fairy tales, childhood and naughtiness. In addition to photography and animation, Valentin Sidorenko works with documentary films.