I’ve always had a strong interest in photography, and at one point, I wanted to become a photojournalist. While I didn’t pursue that path, my passion for photography remains, and I’ve even “samazed” the French city of Trouville-Sur-Mer, a charming seaside resort and port on the English Channel (Calvados). New photos will be published soon.
A few months ago, I visited an exhibition dedicated to the French artist, photographer, and writer Claude Cahun, and I plan to write more about this amazing artist soon. More recently, I’ve had the pleasure of seeing the stunning photographs of Rashid Mahdi, as well as the captivating work of French photographer Claude Iverné.
My Sama-friends at the Sama Gazette have already posted about this exhibition: “A few days ago, we went to see a collective exhibition in Paris: Photographies soudanaises (Sudanese Photographs). The gallery Clémentine de la Féronnière brought together, thanks to the Elnour collective founded by Claude Iverné in 2003, photographs by Rashid Mahdi, as well as work by Richard Lokiden Wani, Gadalla Gubara, Madani Gahory, Osman Hamid Khalifa, Ahmed Omar Addow, and others.”
I was curious to see all those photographs for myself. I already knew Rashid Mahdi’s work, and it never fails to captivate. As the Sama Gazette writes: “It is impressive to see the meticulous work he did on every photo he took. He touched up negatives, fiddled with prints to remove wrinkles, spots, and sometimes shadows. The colors are stunning, and the result is perfect: each portrait highlights every feature of the face… It’s amazing!”
I was also impressed by the work of the other photographers. While I came to see Mahdi’s work, I was equally eager to see Claude Iverné’s. This collective exhibition was curated by the Elnour Collective, which was founded by Iverné. I’ve read about his travels in Sudan, across the lands of its many tribes. His photographs capture both desolation and tradition, and it’s clear that Iverné knows the country intimately (he also speaks the language fluently) and understands its complex, troubled history.
Follow this link to learn more about this fantastic photographer.
Below is a picture I took of two of Rashid Mahdi’s photographs.
