Joana Choumali: Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 16:44, 12 March 2017
Joana Choumali | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joana Choumali 1974 |
| Nationality | Côte d'Ivoire |
| Known for | Photography |
Joana Choumali is a is a freelance photographer based in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. She uses photography to explore issues of identity and the diversity of African cultures.[1]
Life and work
Joana Choumali was born and raised in Abidjan. After attending local international schools, she studied Graphic Arts in Casablanca (Morocco) and worked as an Art Director in an advertising agency before starting her photography career. Her style includes conceptual portraiture, mixed media and documentary. Much of her work focuses on Africa, her assumptions about the diversity of cultures around her, and her expanding conceptions of the world.[2]
As a child, Choumali would travel to Adaou, a small town in the southeast, to visit her grandmother, a farmer and trader. She often felt a cultural disconnect as they did not speak the same language or share life experiences. After her grandmother died in 2001, Choumali lamented losing part of her family history and questioned her identity as an African.[3] This experienced inspired her 2014 portrait series, "Resilients", which documents young, professional African women who also struggled with connecting to their family's traditional past. The only requirement was that the women had to wear traditional clothing already worn by their grandmother or an older female relative, emphasizing the link between past and present.
Choumali used to be fascinated seeing people of different social origins proudly displaying their facial scarification across the Ivory Coast, but the practice is dying out. Choumali's 2014 work, "Hââbré, the last generation", documents the last generation of scarified Africans. “Hââbré” means “writing”, “sign” and “scarification”; this one word signifies all three notions in Kô, a language from Burkina Faso. Most of the people photographed emigrated from Burkia Faso a long time ago, but the scarification reminds them of their home country and their past. The project gathers their testimonies and looks at their integration into Ivoirian socity.[4]
Her work continues to convey her vision of an Africa that’s between tradition and modernity.
Exhibitions
- 2016: Solo Exhibition, 50 Golborne Gallery, London, "Hââbré, the last generation"[5]
- 2015: Photolux Festival, "Sacro e profano"Lucca, Italy, Series "Résilientes"[6]
- 2015: Photoquai Biennale, "We are family" Quai Branly Museum, and Eiffel Tower, Paris, Series "Hââbré, the last generation"[7]
- 2014: The Troppenmuseum of World Cultures, Amsterdam, Skin Deep, "Hââbré, the last generation"
Awards
- 2016: Fourthwall book Award, "Hââbré, the last generation"[8]
- 2016: Magnum Foundation Emergency Fund, Series "Sissi Barra"[9]
- 2014: POPCAP '14 Prize Africa, "Hââbré, the last generation"
- 2014: LensCulture Emerging Talents Awards, "Hââbré, the last generation[10]
References
- ^ LensCulture, Joana Choumali |. "Joana Choumali | LensCulture". LensCulture. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ LensCulture, Joana Choumali |. "Joana Choumali | LensCulture". LensCulture. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ Richardson, Whitney. "Young Africans, Wrapped in Tradition". Lens Blog. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ "Joana Choumali: "Hââbré, the Last Generation"". The Leica Camera Blog. 2015-02-04. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ "50Golborne | African Art Gallery | London". 50Golborne | African Art Gallery | London. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ "Joana Choumali | Resilients - Photoluxfestival". Photoluxfestival. 2016-04-11. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ "Photoquai 2015 - Les photographes - Joana Choumali". www.photoquai.fr. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ "Hââbré, The Last Generation - Fourthwall Books". Fourthwall Books. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ "TIME Exclusive: Magnum Emergency Fund Announces 2016 Grantees". Time. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
- ^ LensCulture. "LensCulture Emerging Talents 2014". LensCulture. Retrieved 2017-03-11.