Swiss Based Award Winning Photographer Carmela Harshani Odoni lays bare the story of her adoption and how it inspired her to hold her first exhibition on the search for her birth mother.
Why did you decide to take up photography?
As a child it was my dream to become a photographer. After I finished my schooling I was fortunate to get an apprenticeship as a photographer. Then I started working for a newspaper and during that time I studied press photography in Lucerne. This led me to specializing in reportage photography.
How would you describe your style of photography?
I like to tell stories, so I opt for reportage photography. This is about shooting the most powerful images to convey the atmosphere of the event and therefore, preserving a moment forever. Reportage shows the emotion felt by the subjects and the images make you feel like you were there. I am also partial to analog photography and tend to mostly use natural light and show things as they are.
A few years ago you held an exhibition called ‘Harshani’. Can you tell us what that exhibition was about and where it was held?
The exhibition ‘Harshani’, which is also my middle name is the photo reportage about the search for my Sri Lankan birth mother. I was allowed to exhibit it in Lucerne and in Biel at the Bieler Fototage. The exhibition was held at the house for art in Uri. In connection with the Bieler Fototage, the work travelled to Johannesburg and Mozambique. Then finally it was exhibited in Schaffhausen, at the word and the image festival titled “Colorful India”.
After ‘Harshani’ you set aside the subject of adoption for almost a decade. Why was that?
After this emotional journey, working on the exhibition and dealing with my adoption, I needed a break from the subject. I needed time to process.
Words: Tina Edward Gunawardhana
