Romeo Alaeff

"Eight years after moving from New York City to Berlin, a feeling of alienation still haunts me. I wander the streets alone at night, camera in hand, trying to find my place in my latest 'home.'" What does "home" mean when one is a stranger living in another country? Artist Romeo Alaeff explores this question in In der Fremde: Pictures from Home, a haunting, cinematic, and evocative survey of Berlin as seen through the lens of an eternal outsider. Framed by Alaeff's complex familial background, spanning from Yemen to the former USSR, Poland, Israel, and the United States, the photographs are tinged with a deep sense of longing and touch on themes of migration, belonging, and the search for home. Inspiring essays by Yuval Noah Harari, Christian Rattemeyer, Charles Simic, Eva Hoffman, Rory MacLean, Joseph Kertes, and Romeo Alaeff illuminate a wide horizon of perspectives.

ROMEO ALAEFF (*1970, Brooklyn) lives in Berlin. Originally studying biomedical engineering, he received a BA in photography from Tulane University and an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. His works, which often deal with epistemological, psychological, or sociological issues, are exhibited worldwide.