March 5 2024- The common perception of early photography from West Africa often frames it through a colonizing lens, depicting Europeans with new technology documenting the region under imperial influence. However, a new book challenges this narrative, suggesting that this image is only partially true. “Portrait and Place: Photography in Senegal, 1840-1960,” by Giulia Paoletti, an assistant professor at the University of Virginia, seeks to re-examine the history of photography in West Africa. The book aims to uncover unpublished works, attribute authorship to images labeled as anonymous, and reveal a more complex and empowered story of West Africa’s relationship with photography, challenging myths associated with the colonial perspective.
A new book unearths a buried history of photography in West Africa
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