PARIS, FRANCE.- The Maison Européenne de la Photographie presents Patrizia Mussa - La Buona Ventura, on view through September 10, 2006. When people emigrate, they often feel the desire for a new destiny. This desire is rarely rational, and is sometimes unrelated to necessity. These days, when population movements are commonplace, many people have been driven by neither hunger nor war to leave their native land and move to Paris, this generous, friendly place. Others were born here and grew up in France. But the music of their origins continues to play in their hearts.

Patrizia Mussa's photos form the first instalment of a series entitled "Strange Strangers". Every year the MEP will ask a foreign photographer to work on the theme of his or her community in Paris.

Well known for her work on architecture and her landscape photos, Patrizia Mussa has published several books and has created international advertising campaigns in top magazines in Europe and the USA. She has also worked with major contemporary art and photography institutions, and has been invited to take part in several photo festivals (exhibition at the Photo-Biennale in Moscow, 2004 / "Rénovation" at the Transphotographiques Festival in Lille, 2004 / "Encore" at the Festival of Fashion and Photography in Moscow, 2005).