Almost two years ago, I left my hometown. No matter where I live, its long shadow follows me closely, forcing me to revisit this place with the persistence of a bad dream.

There was a time when I actually knew how to take photos. Nothing fancy or award-winning, of course, and I didn’t get all mathematical about Fibonacci numbers. I just studied Kornbluh, Bresson, Erwin’s work, practiced for hours, and tried to imitate them. Sometimes it turned out decent. Then I...