Kel Marubi

Kel Marubi was an Albanian photographer and father of Gegë Marubi, who was born in Shkodër in 1870. He was the assistant and successor of Pietro Marubi, an Italian photographer who established the first photographic studio in Albania. Kel Marubi changed his name from Mikel Kodheli to honor his mentor. He photographed the Albanian political and cultural leaders of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, as well as the common people and landscapes. He was an active patriot and participated in the Albanian National Awakening, founding and leading various associations and publications related to the Albanian language and culture. He donated his photographic collection of 150,000 negatives to the Albanian state in 1970, and worked for their preservation until his death in 1940. He is regarded as one of the most prominent Balkan photographers of his generation.