Jul

Opening Eyes to the Cultural History of Africa

by Meredith Mullins on July 20, 2015

Portrait photography of Ikhlas Khan by Omar Victor Diop showing a cultural history of Africa. (Image © Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy of Galerie MAGNIN-A.)

Ikhlas Khan, from the Diaspora series, 2015
© Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris

Omar Victor Diop’s Transformative Portrait Photography

The room is alive with cultural history. The photographs exhibited in the Grande Halle of the Rencontres d’Arles are rich in texture and color. The historic African figures are presented formally, elegantly, powerfully. Their pride shines through.

As the photographer Omar Victor Diop explains, “They seem to say, ‘Look at me. I was here. I did this.’”

The portrait photography in Diop’s exhibit “Diaspora,” which recently opened at the Arles festival of photography, transports us to another time. The images are not just a sensory journey into the cultural history of Africa, but are also a making of history of the artistic kind. The 34-year-old artist has something compelling to say.

Omar Victor Diop at the Rencontres d'Arles exhibit, showing his portrait photography based on the cultural history of Africa. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Omar Victor Diop at the opening of Diaspora at the Rencontres d’Arles in France
© Meredith Mullins

Diaspora—Exile, Dispersion, Exclusion

What do the subjects of Diaspora—Jean-Baptiste Belley, Ikhlas Khan, Frederick Douglass, Dom Nicolau, and August Sabac El Cher—have in common?

“Most of them were born into or sold into slavery,” Diop points out. “They all managed to be very influential—in areas that were not ready for them, with people who did not recognize them even as human beings. These men transformed the negative into something positive that lasted throughout the century.”

These historic figures are not particularly well known. Diop had not even heard of them before he began his research, although some were born not far from his home in Senegal.

He dove into history to find these “exotic others” and then embarked on an art history journey to find the original artworks that immortalized them (created from the 15^th to 19^th centuries).

Dom Nicolau, prince of Kongo, in the portrait photography of Omar Victor Diop, based on the cultural history of Africa. (Image © Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy of Galerie MAGNIN-A.)

Dom Nicolau, 2014/Série Diaspora
© Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris

The subjects range from Dom Nicolau, Prince of Kongo (known for his public protest of colonialism) to Juan de Pareja, a slave in the household and workshop of the painter Velázquez (painted by Velázquez around the time de Pareja was granted his freedom).

And from Ayuba Suleiman Diallo (author of one of the earliest slave narratives), to Frederick Douglass (a leader of the abolitionist movement in America and the first African American to be nominated for Vice President of the Unites States).

Angelo Soliman in portrait photography of Omar Victor Diop, based on the cultural history of Africa. (Image © Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A.)

Angelo Soliman, 2014/Série Diaspora
© Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris

A Closer Look: Oh, I See a Common Spirit

When we look closely, we find that the photographs have even more in common. The subjects all have the same face. Diop has transformed himself into these historic figures, while he mirrors the original artwork in costume and style.

As he worked alone in the studio to make these images, he admits to feeling as if he were having a conversation with each subject.

“I felt very emotional at times, as if the historic figure was there with me. Each session felt like a prayer. These stories were beautiful enough that they had to be told and shown.”

A Kindred Soul

Of all his Diaspora subjects, Diop feels closest to Jean-Baptiste Belley. Belley was born on the island of Gorée, only two kilometers away from Diop’s birthplace.

Belley was sent to the French West Indies as a slave, but managed to buy his freedom and moved to France.

Jean-Baptiste Belley is shown in Omar Victor Diop's portrait photography, as part of a series on the cultural history of Africa. (Image © Omar vVictor Diop. Courtesy of Galerie MAGNIN-A.)

Jean-Baptiste Belley, 2014/Série Diaspora
© Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris

Diop adds to the story, “In France, he was a member of the National Convention and a part of the revolution Dream Team who gave birth to the French Republic. Very few people know about Belley. Not in France. Not in Senegal.”

“He wanted a better world and fought for it,” Diop continues, with reverence and respect. “He was enslaved by the same people for whom he later fought. The story deserves to be told . . . as often as possible.”

Ayuba Suleiman Diallo in the portrait photography of Omar Victor Diop, based on a cultural history of Africa. (Image © Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy of Galerie MAGNIN-A.)

Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, 2014/Série Diaspora
© Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris

The Soccer Connection

When we take one more close look, we see that each photograph also has a subtle connection to soccer (football)—a ball, a shoe, a referee’s whistle, a glove.

Diop uses these elements to provide a common contemporary thread to unify the original artwork, which crossed several centuries.

More important, he sees a similarity between these historic heroes and the African soccer players.

Just as the heroes of the past achieved glory and recognition, so do the soccer players of today. And, just as these historic figures suffered from racism, so too do the players of today.

“With soccer players, there is a very interesting blend of glory, hero-worship and exclusion,” Diop explains. “Every so often, you get racist chants or banana skins thrown on the pitch and the whole illusion of integration is shattered in the most brutal way.”

We are reminded of the past and the present.

El Moro, Moroccan man, in the portrait photography of Omar Victor Diop, based on the cultural history of Africa. (Image © Omar Victor Diop. Courtest of Galerie MAGNIN-A.)

El Moro, 2014/Série Diaspora
© Omar Victor Diop. Courtesy Galerie MAGNIN-A, Paris

The Future

What is in the future for this thoughtful young artist? What projects come next after his memorable portrait photography exploring the cultural history of Africa?

“My goal is to leave a body of work that has the ability to speak to everyone,” Diop says and adds that he doesn’t mean to sound pretentious. “Of course I’m African. I’m a proud African. But I’m curious about the rest of the world. I want to be influenced by different societies and contexts.”

He sums it up simply and powerfully: “It’s all about celebrating humanity. It’s about what binds us together.”

As an artist (and a humanist), Diop has wisdom way beyond his years.

Omar Victor Diop‘s exhibit at the Rencontres d’Arles is open through September 20. His work can also be seen at the Galerie MAGNIN-A in Paris and at PhotoQuai, sponsored by the Musée Quai Branly (beginning 22 September).

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Meredith Mullins 6 Comments

Africa/Cultural Heritage & Traditions/The World's Photography

Jun

Web-Footed Wanderlust

by Meredith Mullins on June 22, 2015

Single African blackfooted penguin showing his wanderlust iin a penguin parade. (Image © iStock.)

Getting out and about
© iStock

Five Travel Tips from a Penguin Parade

You can learn a lot of things from a jackass.

It’s not often that I get to start a story with a tribute to a jackass.

In this case, I’m talking about the jackass penguin, or African blackfooted penguin. (The unfortunate nickname of “jackass” comes from the honking sound they make, reminiscent of a donkey braying.)

I first learned of these penguins when I saw their penchant for curiosity and wanderlust in a whimsical YouTube video.

Meredith Mullins 6 Comments

Art of Travel/USA

Jun

Climb into a Painting and Take Some Selfies

by Meredith Mullins on June 8, 2015

Boy stepping out of interactive 3D art, a replica of a painting by Vincent Van Gogh, provides rich opportunities for selfies in the interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Photo Courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

Becoming part of the art
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)

Interactive 3D Art Takes Hold in the Philippines

Somewhere deep in our dreams, we all want to be famous—or at least the lead actor in a production or the star of the moment.

I sang my heart out as an 8-year-old, in the secluded corners of our house, with a broomstick microphone in hand. I knew the words to every musical. I pictured myself accepting the Oscar (with great humility and a speech that brought tears to every member of the audience). Didn’t happen.

Young woman pretending to hold mouth of sea monster open in the interactive 3D art painting, which provides rich opportunities for selfies in the interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

Open wide
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)

3D Dreams at Art in Island Museum

Thanks to the Korean creators of a new interactive 3D art museum in the Philippines, these kinds of dramatic-role dreams can come true for all of us non-celebrities. Visitors can become stars of selfies, letting their inner actor emerge.

Bring your own costumes, props, and creative spirit . . . and step into a world of phenomenal 3D art.

Lights

Action

Camera

Person pretending to be a mermaid in the interactive 3D art painting, which provides rich opportunities for selfies in the interactive 3D Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

Mermaid-inspired creativity
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)

Innovations that Inspire

The Art in Island Museum opened six months ago in Quezon City, north of Manila, and is already a bricks-and-mortar—and viral— sensation.

The CEO, Yun Jae Kyoung, decided to open the museum in the Philippines because of Filipinos’ love affair with taking selfies and sharing them with people they care about on social media.

It is one of the largest 3D art museums in the world, with a variety of “trick art” paintings.

High angle shot of the interior of the Art in Island Museum in the Philippines, a place rich in opportunities for selfies and the experience of interactive 3D art. (Photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

One of the themed rooms at the Art in Island Museum
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)

The large murals were designed by a team of Korean master painters to give the illusion of depth and to allow visitors to become part of the art.

The art spans the spectrum, from interpretations of iconic paintings—such as Van Gogh’s “The Church at Auvers,” Munch’s “The Scream,” and Fragonard’s “The Swing”—to optical illusions where the realities of size, space, and gravity are in question.

Man catching a shoe in front of the ED art replica of Fragonard's The Swing, providing rich opportunities for selfies at the 3D interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

An interpretation of Fragonard’s “The Swing”
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)

Visitors can climb walls, take a gondola ride, balance on ancient tombs, surf the perfect curl, or dunk a basket, no matter their skill, age, or height.

Young man dunking a basketball in the 3D interactive painting, providing rich opportunities for selfies at the 3D interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

A slam dunk
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)

The Museum’s Priority: Go Crazy

This is a museum that defies the standard rules. You can touch things. You can climb on things. You can take as many photographs as you want and stay as long as you like.

The human interaction with the art is as fun as the art itself, since creative and comical poses are encouraged.

Boy appearing out of proportion looks a smaller person in large chair in the 3D interactive painting, providing rich opportunities for selfies at the 3D interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

Size may or may not matter.
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)

If you can’t take a selfie in a particular painting (and, let’s face it, you’ll need an XXL selfie stick or smartphone remote to make a self-portrait with this large-scale art), the museum staff are available to serve as paparazzi.

The only rule: you can’t wear shoes, since they might damage the painting on the floor. Bring some socks, go barefoot, or use the museum-provided comfy slippers.

Person balancing in a 3D interactive painting of ancient ruins, providing rich opportunities for selfies in the 3D interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Image © Edgar Alan Zeta-Yap.)

The Fun of Being Part of Art

The interactive 3D art museum philosophy says, “We want you to be part of art.” Oh, I see the fun people are having and the creativity that emerges as visitors become part of the art. So, I’m all for how these 3D innovations feed the current craze for selfies.

Woman under waterfall in a 3D interactive painting, providing rich opportunities for selfies at the 3D interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Image © Edgar Alan Zeta-Yap.)

And maybe, after that hunger for fame and self-recognition is fed, we can go to an art museum and fight the urge to photograph the work or photograph ourselves in front of each masterpiece to prove we were “there.”

Instead, we can just spend the moment in awed silence and think about how a work of art makes us feel. That, for me, is the true meaning of interactive art.

Woman in white against the 3D interactive angel wing painting, providing rich opportunities for selfies at the 3D interactive Art in Island Museum in the Philippines. (Photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum.)

We can all be perfect angels.
(photo courtesy of Art in Island Museum)