The Stone Space Gallery in Leytonstone is exploring how European identity is shaped by political events in its latest photography exhibition called Borderlands.

The work was created by Paola Leonardi, who has a BA in Fine Art, which combined drawing, printmaking and photography and and MA in Image and Communication from Goldsmiths College where she was tutored by art historian and photography critic Ian Jeffrey.

The 36-year-old, who grew up in Modena, north of Italy, before moving to Manor Park in 1999, only started taking photographing seriously in 2012, but has a long held fascination with land borders that separate countries that are part of the EU from those that aren’t.

She tells her story of how she travelled on foot, buses and hitchhiked through Europe carrying only her camera, a map and a compass...

What can visitors see at the exhibition?

The images are all analogue photographs that I have shot over the past four years. It is a collection of analogue photographs representing the people and places along the land borders of the European Union, developed with the purpose of creating an archive of images narrating life at the edges of Europe.

I have walked along the Cyprus’ buffer zone with the UN soldiers, as well as photographing along the borders of Greece and Albania, Greece and Turkey, Serbia and Croatia and Serbia and Romania.

Why were you inspired by this theme?

My family has roots in various parts of Europe and I consider my identity to be European. I grew up in Italy with my grandmother, whose family was from Istria (today part of Croatia); they had to flee during WWI. My grandmother was born as refugee in Switzerland before her family resettled in Italy. In my family my grandmother was often referred as being “Yugoslavian” and I was always curious about where she came from and how socio-political events had changed the life of her family. This brought me to take an interest in the significance of European identity and how people relate to the territories they inhabit.

What sort of photography do you specialise in?

I use digital for my commercial work, but all my personal projects are analogue. I mainly use a Hasselblad camera that shoots images in square format and I print the images in the darkroom. I can print both traditional black and white, as well as colour.

Have you staged other exhibitions?

The series Borderlands was exhibited at the Copenhagen Festival of Photography in 2015 as well as in a solo exhibition in Florence last June.

Do you come from an artistic family?

My mum is a mathematician and was keen on me studying mathematics. My dad is a successful architect, designer and painter who has exhibited worldwide (a chair he designed is on display at the MoMA in New York right now, which you can view: archivioleonardi.it). He also worked as a photographer so I guess I took my artistic traits from him. However, when I was a teenager I studied accountancy, although I am not sure why as I hated it. I guess that was my form of rebellion.

What is next for you?

I am organising a group exhibition titled Territorial with six other photographers, which will open on October 20 at The Bank Space Gallery, The Cass School of Art, opposite the Whitechapel Gallery. From November, I will be travelling to photograph more borders.

Borderlands, The Stone Space Galley, Church Lane, Leytonstone, E11 1HQ, Thursday, October 6 to Sunday, October 30, details: leonardiphoto.com, thestonespace.wordpress.com