Perspective | Voices of African Photography: Dancing with Casablanca’s light
38 بار بازدید -
6 سال پیش
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Perspective | Voices of African
Perspective | Voices of African Photography: Dancing with Casablanca’s light
Morocco, north africa, africa, street photography, dance, hip hop, breakdance
@dongonews9123
(Yassine Alaoui Ismaili) By Yasmine Akki September 17 at 6:00 AM Voices of African Photography is a 10-part series presented in partnership with the African Photojournalism Database, a joint project of Everyday Africa and World Press Photo, to highlight the work of 10 African photographers and photojournalists. “When I’m working in a situation like this, I try to show not only the scale of the material destruction, but also its effect on people’s lives. At times something that may appear mundane under normal circumstances, when seen against the backdrop of unimaginable destruction, can help put life and death in perspective, so we can begin the comprehend the horror of war.” Moroccan-born photographer Yassine Alaoui Ismaili, also known as “Yoriyas,” is no stranger to the Casablanca street scene. As a teenager, Yoriyas became passionate about hip-hop and joined the first wave of break-dancers in Morocco in 1980s. While traveling to international competitions, he came equipped with his camera to document the journey with his dance crew. But following a serious knee-injury, break-dancing at the same pace was no longer an option. Instead, Yoriyas took to the streets — the very same streets he would spend hours performing on with his friends — and began documenting his hometown, Casablanca. Yoriyas recalled introducing himself as a Casablanca-native to strangers around the world when traveling to dance competitions, to which they would reply “Casablanca, like the movie!” This repetitive encounter ignited Yoriyas’ desire to offer a glimpse of the Morocco he knows, which is far from the glamour of the Hollywood studio where “Casablanca,” the 1942 classic, was filmed. The photo series “Casablanca Not The Movie” was thus born. Yoriyas presents a “love letter” to his city “for all of those who want to see a truthful representation of Casablanca and Morocco,” he says. Independently from this series, Yoriyas also captures scenes around Morocco, such as in Essaouira for the Gnawa Music Festival during which he experimented with flash photography on the outskirts of the festival where street life and the Gnawa music’s rhythm would blend into one. As an African photographer, Yoriyas believes there is still work to do in terms of getting African photographers’ work attention in the international photography scene. “I think we should question (…) the way the world looks [at] and thinks about Africa,” Yoriyas says. He is interested in seeing more documentary, street and daily photography from African photographers in an effort to elevate local narratives. When asked about the photography scene throughout the continent, Yoriyas told In Sight that initially his photos were not welcome in many African photography festivals and magazines, and he relied instead on social media to share his work. Recently though, Yoriyas’s playful eye has been recognized by numerous publications, galleries and festivals around the world, enabling his work to travel around Europe,
Morocco, north africa, africa, street photography, dance, hip hop, breakdance
@dongonews9123
(Yassine Alaoui Ismaili) By Yasmine Akki September 17 at 6:00 AM Voices of African Photography is a 10-part series presented in partnership with the African Photojournalism Database, a joint project of Everyday Africa and World Press Photo, to highlight the work of 10 African photographers and photojournalists. “When I’m working in a situation like this, I try to show not only the scale of the material destruction, but also its effect on people’s lives. At times something that may appear mundane under normal circumstances, when seen against the backdrop of unimaginable destruction, can help put life and death in perspective, so we can begin the comprehend the horror of war.” Moroccan-born photographer Yassine Alaoui Ismaili, also known as “Yoriyas,” is no stranger to the Casablanca street scene. As a teenager, Yoriyas became passionate about hip-hop and joined the first wave of break-dancers in Morocco in 1980s. While traveling to international competitions, he came equipped with his camera to document the journey with his dance crew. But following a serious knee-injury, break-dancing at the same pace was no longer an option. Instead, Yoriyas took to the streets — the very same streets he would spend hours performing on with his friends — and began documenting his hometown, Casablanca. Yoriyas recalled introducing himself as a Casablanca-native to strangers around the world when traveling to dance competitions, to which they would reply “Casablanca, like the movie!” This repetitive encounter ignited Yoriyas’ desire to offer a glimpse of the Morocco he knows, which is far from the glamour of the Hollywood studio where “Casablanca,” the 1942 classic, was filmed. The photo series “Casablanca Not The Movie” was thus born. Yoriyas presents a “love letter” to his city “for all of those who want to see a truthful representation of Casablanca and Morocco,” he says. Independently from this series, Yoriyas also captures scenes around Morocco, such as in Essaouira for the Gnawa Music Festival during which he experimented with flash photography on the outskirts of the festival where street life and the Gnawa music’s rhythm would blend into one. As an African photographer, Yoriyas believes there is still work to do in terms of getting African photographers’ work attention in the international photography scene. “I think we should question (…) the way the world looks [at] and thinks about Africa,” Yoriyas says. He is interested in seeing more documentary, street and daily photography from African photographers in an effort to elevate local narratives. When asked about the photography scene throughout the continent, Yoriyas told In Sight that initially his photos were not welcome in many African photography festivals and magazines, and he relied instead on social media to share his work. Recently though, Yoriyas’s playful eye has been recognized by numerous publications, galleries and festivals around the world, enabling his work to travel around Europe,
6 سال پیش
در تاریخ 1397/06/26 منتشر شده
است.
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