Leica Store & Gallery Boston Presents "Homeland" by Maria Guțu

Winner of the 2024 Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award explores memory, belonging, and identity in rural Moldova.

BOSTON, Nov. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Leica Gallery Boston is proud to present Homeland, a solo exhibition by Moldovan photographer Maria Guțu, winner of the 2024 Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award (LOBA). Opening on Friday, November 7, the exhibition explores themes of memory, belonging, and socio-economic transformation in the Republic of Moldova. Homeland will be on view through January 4, 2026.

In Homeland (2019–2023), Guțu reflects on her upbringing in a rural Moldovan village, documenting the people and landscapes that shaped her early life. Her work balances nostalgia with social realism, capturing both the enduring beauty and the quiet struggles of her community. Children wandering through fields, men playing traditional music, and empty rural vistas evoke a sense of longing while questioning what remains when so many have left in search of opportunity elsewhere.

Guțu's was the 2024 LOBA Newcomer Award recipient, an award that celebrates emerging photographers who illuminate the relationship between humanity and the environment. Homeland embodies the spirit of storytelling that defines Leica's cultural mission—to champion authentic visual narratives and amplify new voices shaping contemporary documentary photography.

"The Republic of Moldova is my home—beautiful, complex, and full of contradictions," says Guțu. "My images are my way of reconciling love for its nature and people with the frustration of its limitations. It's both a tribute and a question about the meaning of belonging."

Through this exhibition, Leica Gallery Boston reaffirms its commitment to supporting art and culture, fostering visibility and opportunities for emerging talents from around the world. Homeland reflects Leica's mission to highlight the human stories behind the lens and to celebrate photography's power to document, question, and connect.

As part of the exhibition program, Leica Store & Gallery Boston will host an opening reception on Friday, November 7, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM, inviting guests to experience Homeland by Maria Guțu in person.

Exhibition Hours:
Leica Gallery Boston is open Monday through Saturday, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM, and Sunday from 12:00 PM – 5:00 PM.

Leica Store and Gallery Boston
74 Arlington St, Boston, MA 02116; (857) 305-3609

Please find further information at:

Brunswick Group

Phone: (201) 995-0051

E-mail: [email protected]

Internet: www.leica-camera.com

About Leica Camera

Leica Camera AG is a global premium manufacturer of cameras, lenses, and sports optics products, with a company history spanning over 150 years. As part of its growth strategy, Leica has expanded into mobile imaging (smartphones), high-quality eyeglass lenses and watch manufacturing, and is also present in the home cinema segment with its own projectors.

Headquartered in Wetzlar, Germany, with a second production facility in Vila Nova de Famalicão, Portugal, Leica Camera AG operates a global network of sales subsidiaries and more than 120 Leica Stores.
The Leica brand represents excellent quality, German craftsmanship, and industrial design, seamlessly combined with innovative technology. An integral part of the brand's culture is its commitment to fostering photographic culture, exemplified by approximately 30 Leica Galleries worldwide, Leica Academies, and prestigious international awards such as the Leica Hall of Fame Award and the Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA).

About the Artist
Maria Guțu (b. 1996, Republic of Moldova) is a documentary photographer whose work explores themes of youth, isolation, and the relationship between people and their environment. She holds a degree in cinematography from the Academy of Music, Theatre, and Fine Arts in Chișinău and completed her studies at Docdocdoc School of Modern Photography in Saint Petersburg. Guțu's work has been recognized internationally, including being named one of Artpil's "30 Under 30 Women Photographers" and receiving accolades from Sony World Photography Awards and The Independent Photographer. In 2024, she was awarded the Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award for her series Homeland. She currently lives and works in Glodeni, Moldova.

SOURCE Leica Camera USA