On October 1st 2024, Reporting House welcomed British-Albanian artist Lala Meredith Vula as she opened her exhibition “A Journey with My Father” at the historic Hamam of Prishtina. The exhibit featured selected works from her personal series “Bathers,” which captures social life across different regions of Kosovo during the 1980s and 1990s. During the event, Vula shared the deeply personal story behind the series — a journey of reconnection with her father, from whom she was separated at the age of four.
Her father worked at Kosovo’s Institution for the Protection of Monuments, specializing in preserving old hammams. Through his love of architecture, he introduced Vula to this world, inspiring her to document the disuse of the Prishtina Hamam and later photograph bathers at a functioning hamam near the Albanian-Macedonian border. “Bathers” challenges traditional artistic portrayals of women bathing, offering a fresh, spontaneous, and intimate perspective.
Vula described the series as an emotional journey reflecting her father’s passion for architecture and their renewed bond after many years. The event attracted artists, architects, civil society representatives, and media, highlighting the importance of preserving cultural memory and history through art and photography.