#Exhibit of the Month

The main parts of the camera include the body, bellows, lens, and viewfinder system. The body consists of two lacquered walnut wood frames, joined by a folding black textile bellows that allows the necessary extension for focusing. On the front panel is the Agfa anastigmat lens, mounted in a Compur-type shutter produced by F. Deckel in Munich. It features a foldable "brilliant" viewfinder for both portrait and landscape orientation. It uses glass photographic plates coated with a photographic emulsion, mounted in walnut wood holders, with a frame size of 9x12 cm.
The walnut wood model, considered the flagship "Agfa Isolar Luxus," was designed by the A.H. Rietzschel factory in Munich, acquired by AGFA in 1925, which continued producing this type of camera under its own name until the late 1920s.
The piece was restored by Mihail Culașco, Restoration Department of NMHM.
Brief History of the Camera
The history of the camera spans 200 years, evolving from the camera obscura to today's digital devices. Key milestones include: the first permanent photograph in 1826 by French physicist Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, using a wooden box and a plate coated with bitumen of Judea; the invention of the first photographic process - daguerreotype - in 1839 by Frenchman Louis Daguerre, marking the official birth of photography; the invention of calotype, based on the negative/positive principle, by British physicist and chemist Fox Talbot; the invention of wet collodion plates by Englishman Frederick Scott Archer and dry glass plates by Richard Leach Maddox and John Huds Bennet; the introduction of flexible roll film and the launch of the first Kodak camera by American inventor George Eastman; the release of the first 35 mm film camera by German company "Leica"; the launch of the first instant camera "Polaroid," invented by American Edwin Land. Finally, starting in 1975, this path led to the digital photography revolution. Each successive step made cameras smaller and faster, significantly improving image quality.
The first photographic studio in Chișinău was opened in 1854 by Eduard Glewski, and before World War I, there were already about 100 photography studios in Bessarabia.
The collection of the National Museum of History of Moldova includes over 30 cameras, made in Austria, Germany, France, USSR, Japan, and China, dating from the late 19th century to the 2000s. Among them are folding bellows cameras, BOX-type cameras, single-lens reflex (SLR) and twin-lens reflex (TLR) cameras, as well as digital (DSLR) cameras.

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“Echoes of War” exhibition Opens in Moldova

4 October, 2023

"Echoes of War" by a Syrian photojournalist, Omar Sanadiki opened on 4 October in the National Museum of History of Moldova. The exhibition depicts two distant, yet intertwined wars in Syria and in Ukraine. The photos in Ukraine were shot in June this year, and were brought to Chişinău by the European External Action Service (EEAS) as a collaborative project with the photographer. "Echoes of War" will stay on show until 31 October at the Museum.

In his captivating photos, Sanadiki provides a reflective visual journey contrasting the turbulent atmospheres from the war that broke out in 2011 in Syria with those captured in 2023 in Ukraine. Sanadiki documents the war in Syria since its first day, photographing the destruction and the lives of the inhabitants of Homes, Aleppo and Damascus. The idea of the exhibition was born in Ukraine, during a media training organized by the EEAS which Sanadiki participated in.

During the opening of the exhibition on 4 October, the photographer said: "While visiting Ukraine and talking to the Ukrainian journalists, I felt inspired by seeing how the Ukrainian people cope with the war". "It reminded me of my people, of Syrians. Of our suffering and pain".

Sanadiki paired the photos he took in Syria with the frames from Ukraine in ten powerful stories, from personal reaction to destruction, portraying the inside of bombed houses, hands going through the rubble in the search of faded memories and pieces of past lives. He also depicts how life continues in both nations, with everyday tales of families, friends and passers-by who continue to live in Syria and Ukraine.

"These photos represent two distant, yet intertwined experiences of war, suffering and resilience" - said Aude Maio-Coliche, Director of Strategic Communication and Foresight at the European External Action Service at the opening. "They transcend geographical and cultural or linguistic boundaries".

Ambassador Jānis Mažeiks, the Head of EU Delegation to the Republic of Moldova said "It is very important that there are artists who document this evil, but also document the humanity, the way life goes on, how children are being born and raised, even against the background of shelled buildings".

"For me" - added the Ambassador - "it is also a reminder of being on the right side of the history. I think we can collectively take pride in the fact that the European Union and the Republic of Moldova both on the occasions of Syria and of the war in Ukraine - Russia's unprovoked aggression against Ukraine - have been on the right side of the history, not only in words, but also in deeds".

"Echoes of War" is an example of the efforts of the European Union to continue the conversation about the true cost of war. It also serves as a reminder that even in the darkest of times, the human spirit remains unbroken, ever-resilient, ever-hopeful.

The exhibition is a result of the training for journalists that took place in Poland and Ukraine for journalists coming from the outside of the European Union organized by the EEAS this summer. On Thursday and Friday the media professionals are visiting Chişinău to join training organized by the EEAS for media representatives from the Western Balkans, Middle East, Africa, South America and Asia to discuss the challenges of disinformation and information manipulation faced by the media today.

The exhibition will stay on display at the National Museum of History of Moldova until 31 October.