Ella Maillart's Photographic Journeys Exhibition at Photo Elysée

Photo Elysée in Lausanne presents 'Ella Maillart. Récits photographiques' from March 6 to November 1, 2026, showcasing the work of the Swiss explorer and photographer. Born in Geneva in 1903, Maillart was an Olympic sailor in 1924 and a champion skier before embarking on decade-long travels across Asia in the 1930s. She documented regions like the Soviet Union, Manchuria, Afghanistan, and the Himalayas, often for Le Petit Parisien. Her photographs capture now-lost landscapes, including the Aral Sea before its desiccation and the Bamiyan Buddhas before their destruction in 2001. Maillart traveled with a Leica camera, developing negatives in rivers. She collaborated with British explorer Peter Fleming on a 6,000-km journey from Beijing to Kashmir, and with writer Annemarie Schwarzenbach on a drive from Geneva to Kabul. Her archives of over 20,000 negatives were donated to Photo Elysée in 1989. The exhibition highlights her unique perspective as a female adventurer in a male-dominated era.