African photography? Hmm. In other words, smart safari shots in international travel magazines and news media stills of the forlorn and downcast in the latest disaster? In other worlds, maybe. In this world, African Photography is also localised, critical, unusual and insightful. For a continent-wide snapshot beyond Nollywood Z-cards and post-colonial portraits, let Borders press your buttons…
“Borders” is kaleidoscope of African lives in a global context. The Bamako Africa Photographic exhibition is making its debut in the sub-Sahara at Iziko’s SA National Gallery till January 30th 2011. Curated by Michket Krifa and Laura Serani, it showcases 230 works from 40 photographers and 13 video artists, and focuses on the theme of borders.
Borders are the beginning and the end of any definition or identity. Be they tangible, be they philosophical; at their core, they are an essential element of the composition of our lives and cultures. The exhibition explores this in diverse detail, offering you a glimpse of emotions and situations you may never have imagined with regards to Africa. And not a giraffe or a grass skirt in sight…
In recent years, fairs, biennials, galleries and art centres have grown in regions like South Africa, Nigeria, Mali and northern Africa. The Bamako Encounters African Photographic Biennale is based in Bamako, Mali, where support from The Ministry of Culture as well as French foreign affairs and the EU has helped it become an international event drawing art collectors and artisans alike to the continent we call home. It’s currently in its 8th year.
“The Biennale has 3 goals” says co-curator, Michket Krifa, “one – to be a Malian festival aimed at photography professionals. Two – to be a Pan African event. Three – to help Bamako become more internationally recognised.”
Besides the infrastructural improvements that local support has given local photography in Mali, the presence of international curators, collectors and media at the Biennale also gives photography a chance to widen its lens, an effect evident in some of the key subjects, with select works exploring subjects such as Albinism in Mali, Malians in Paris and CCTV in Reunion…
“Some [photographers] are living between two countries, 3 countries, others are very rooted,” continues Michket. “Identity today is something much more complicated than what it was before. More rich, more mixed.”
“’Borders’, for us, was a nice theme because it uses the metaphoric, practical and geographic meaning. It’s a way to check to the stereotypes, and to go beyond that. It’s extremely open to interpretation. It can be the border problem of immigration, or the border between rich and poor, or secular or religious. Sometimes it’s the borders between photography and painting, photography and fashion. “
Can one exhibition really be a snapshot of a whole continent, considering its deep diversities and disparities, and, of course, its innumerable and debatable borders? Michket is pragmatic and thinks of it, rather, as “a snapshot of the vitality of photography and video, what’s going on the field there; it always reflects the values of the social and political issues. Africans are very rooted to their own reality; it’s such a strong and rich reality, sometimes they fight about it, sometimes they witness about it.”
Witness the wideness at SA National Gallery
till 30 January 2011
@ Iziko SA National Gallery
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