Friday Round Up - 11 November, 2016

This week Photojournalism Now: Friday Round Up features photographic essays on Iran, Russia and Scotland.

Exhibition: Melbourne

Hoda Afshar – In the Exodus, I Love You More

Hoda is originally from Iran and now lives in Melbourne. I interviewed her a couple of years ago about her series Under Western Eyes and am pleased to share some of her new work with you.

In the Exodus, I Love You More is a continuation of her work on her homeland. “This series captures Iran and Iranians' lives and their changing faces during a time of great transition,” Hoda says. “(It) is very close to me, and I am honoured to be holding the first major exhibition of the work at Brightspace Gallery.” 

 

(C) All images Hoda Afshar

17 November to 3 December
Brightspace Gallery
8 Martin Street
St Kilda


Photo Essay:

Valeriy Klamm - The Siberians: Daily Life of Rural Russia

In 2012 I interviewed Valeriy Klamm the project coordinator of the community blog ‘Birthmark on the Map’, a project capturing rural Russia with a focus on Siberia. At the time he told me of his decade long bid to bring a view of rural Russia to a broader audience – to tell a different story about Russia, one that didn't focus on war, climate or deprivation. 

Valeriy works in the cultural sector in his hometown of Novosibirsk, Siberia.  He said, “I wanted to tell the story to the outside world of who we are in reality, not a polished view... I am very happy that the content has stayed real. The blog continues to develop and it is like an endless puzzle, an endless chain”.

This puzzle now has a new piece, Valeriy’s own series The Siberians which is also a book. You can see the book here. I visited Russia some years ago now, but I didn't get to Siberia; the country is so vast it was impossible to cram everything on my 'to do' list into three weeks. Russia is incredibly rich culturally and I found it fascinating, as are Valeriy's photographs. 

(C) All images Valeriy Klamm


Photo Essay:
Laetitia Vancon - At the End of the Day 

French photographer Laetitia Vancon’s photo essay of the Outer Hebrides, Scotland’s western islands, captures some of the last Gaelic-speaking villages and their inhabitants. It’s a hauntingly beautiful series that will be exhibited next month in Paris. Laetitia’s documentary photography encompasses a diverse range of topics with essays on the blood feud in Albania, the vanishing art of mud wrestling in India and the gentrification of Istanbul. You can see more of her work here. 

  

(C) Laetitia Vancon

Friday Round Up - 26 August, 2016

This week we celebrate the 28th edition of Visa pour L’Image, which opens this Saturday. It’s a fantastic line up once again showcasing some of the most important reportage work, that which is known and also that which flies under the radar and perhaps doesn’t garner the attention it should. 

This week Friday Round Up previews the work of four female photojournalists exhibiting at Visa – Marie Dorigny, Catalina Martin-Chico, Anastasia Rudenko and Claire Allard. Next week more on the world's most important, and longest running, photojournalism festival in the beautiful French town of Perpignan. 

Feature:

Visa pour l’Image: Part One

Four Female Photojournalists

Marie Dorigny: 

Displaced - Women in Exile 

In a report commissioned by the European Parliament, French photographer Marie Dorigny documents the women and children, who now make up more than half of the refugees who are fleeing war, violence and terror. 

Lesbos, Greece. A young Greek volunteer with a sea rescue team comforting a distressed and pregnant Iraqi refugee who has just made the crossing from Turkey. © Marie Dorigny / MYOP for the European Parliament 2016

Hotspot, Moria, Lesbos, Greece. Refugees who reach Europe first register at the “hot spot” where they are sorted according to nationality. The waiting seems interminable as the formalities go on and on. © Marie Dorigny / MYOP for the European Parliament 2016

Catalina Martin-Chico: 

The Last and the Lost - The Brave Nomads of Iran

A century ago there were five million nomadic people in Iran. Today they number only 1.5 million. While many are trying to assimilate into urban environments and adapt to a sedentary existence, others continue to lead a traditional nomadic lifestyle, but it is feared they will disappear as the government moves to end their roaming. 

During transhumance, the Bakhtiari people, such as Mahsan and her family, spend the night at a different point so that their animals can graze on fresh pastures. Shirin Bahar, near Lali, Khuzestan, Iran, April 2016. © Catalina Martin-Chico / Cosmos

Primary schooling in the mountains to learn basic literacy and numeracy. For any further education the children have to move to the city and abandon their traditional nomadic lifestyle. Near Qir, Fars province, Iran, February 2016. © Catalina Martin-Chico / Cosmos

Zohreh and her sister-in-law, their bodies misshapen from their harsh living conditions. For nomads, “women are men” so that means doing the same physical work. Basoft, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, Iran, April 2016. © Catalina Martin-Chico / Cosmos

Anastasia Rudenko:

Institutions for the Mentally Disabled in Russia
In this series, Anastasia Rudenko, who won the Canon Female Photojournalist Award 2015 (supported by ELLE magazine) is pursuing the project she started in 2012, investigating life in institutions for mentally disabled people in the Russian provinces. According to official statistics in 2013 there were more than 1,000 mental care centres for adults in Russia. 150,000 patients reside in these centres including 50,000 who are in long-term social care institutions known as Internats, which are for adults who were previously housed in orphanages for mentally disabled children.

Women near the fire bucket stand outside the women's asylum.
Over the past three years more than 100 patients in mental institutions in Russia have been victims of fires. Ryazan region, Russia, 2015.
© Anastasia Rudenko


The “House of Mercy” is a facility for severely dysfunctional patients, and those likely to run away and get lost. Ryazan region, Russia, 2015. © Anastasia Rudenko

Patients walking in the forest near the village. Elat’ma, Ryazan region, Russia, 2012. © Anastasia Rudenko

Claire Allard:

Backstage
This series by Claire Allard extends over a number of years in which she followed and observed the technical crews who work behind the scenes to make sure the show goes on.  

During an alternative music festival, Yann, the lighting technician, is doing an emergency repair perched on the scaffolding – a great vantage point for the concert. © Claire Allard

Summer is the peak season for rock festivals across Europe, and technicians rarely have a break. Here, Thierry, the sound engineer, is busy setting the stage speakers. Other crew members have brought him something to eat.  Ronquières Festival, Belgium, August 2, 2015. © Claire Allard

To see the full programme visit the Visa pour l'Image website.