When the communist regimes collapsed in 1989, and democracy was introduced alongside capitalism, a euphoric enthusiasm prevailed in Eastern Europe which in the course of time, however, became overshadowed by disappointments and moral confusion. In 1996, the affluent society has remained a distant dream to the majority of the population.
After two years of traveling in the former communist states of Eastern Europe, MAGNUM-photographer Carl De Keyzer has portrayed this subject in East of Eden.
The expressive black and white photographs of daily life scenes in Eastern Europe's major cities and provincial towns, are complemented by thoughts of E.M Cioran, Hans Magnus Enzensberger, Eva Hoffman, Ismail Kadare, Ivan Klima, Gyorgy Konrad, Milan Kundera, Dubravka Ugresic.