Even to the most casual observer the countries in Africa can offer a disorienting array of impressions, and South African photographer Pieter Hugo's amazing images of the marginalized people of his continent delve well below the surface to evoke complicated questions about the individuals he portrays. He is best known for the portraits he took while traveling with the Hyena Men of Nigeria, itinerant performers who use their captive animals to eke out a living on the border of society, and has also photographed in South Africa and Rwanda. Hugo's work displays a very modern self-awareness about his role as a photographer at the intersection of art and journalism, and I am in awe of his fearlessness in capturing difficult subject matter. The New Yorker's visuals editor, Elisabeth Biondi, spoke to Sean O'Hagan about Hugo for The Observer:
'Some people have said to me that Pieter's subject is so dramatic that it would be hard to take a bad picture,' says Biondi, 'but, you know, a photographer chooses his subjects, and that, too, is an important part of having a great eye. Photographers go where their instinct leads them and then try and work out their fascination for the subject through the photographs they take. That's what Pieter's doing but in a kind of extreme way.' She pauses for a moment. 'He has a vision and he pursues it relentlessly. He has what it takes.'
I can't wait to see Hugo's next series which promises to bring his unique perspective to the Nigerian film industry ("Nollywood"), and his book
The Hyena & Other Men is available from
Prestel.
