Watch: An Arranged Marriage with Romania's Teen Witches

She wanted to investigate these stereotypes by photographing real witches in Romania. “I decided to collaborate with the Slovak ethnologist Ivana Šusterová—she focuses on the everyday life and culture of Wallachian Roma people.” Vrăjitoare, accordingly, is a fusion of photography project and ethnographic study.
A witch named Danusia in her home. All photos courtesy of Lucia Sekerková
Witches in Romania are used to sacrificing animals—in this case a black hen—to remove black magic spells.
Sekerková photographed witches who helped women in crumbling marriages, assisted parents of children who suffered from nightmares, and counselled people through several failed relationships. She says that, whether you believe in magic or not, the women provided many clients with support: “In times of need, they can lighten the burden of responsibility, listen to them and even give them what they were lacking from their loved ones.”
Monika, a young witch, takes a selfie with a cross before the beginning of a ritual.
Two young girls picking flowers in the yard behind their house in the middle of Bucharest.
A witch named Elena in her house in Bucharest, Romania.
A famous witch named Bratara Buzea blesses her grandson before his engagement ceremony begins.
The daughter of a witch named Vanessa checks a video that she filmed for her mother’s Facebook page.