Slidefest #15 - 18th February 2014
Gaar Adams
The 15th edition of Slidefest* organised by Gulf Photo Plus is back this month after a long summer break. The latest edition will take place on Wednesday, 18th February at 7pm in the Knowledge Village Auditorium.
Here's the line up of presenters:
Gaar Adams has spent over five years in the Arab world – including extensive time in Yemen – and is co-author of a forthcoming Yemen travel guide.
Over the past three years, Adams has documented the dying sport of Mallakhamb in Maharasthra, India; the struggling national gymnastics program in Sana’a, Yemen; the thriving Pehlwani wrestling competitions of the South Asian diaspora in Dubai, UAE; and the enduring ritual-performances of Kathakali, Kalaripayattu, and Mohiniyattam, in Kerala, India. The intentions of this ongoing project have been primarily to investigate the nuance between sport and theatrics.
On Thursday, 5th of December 2013, Jacob Zuma, the South African president, announced Mandela has died, and that he would be given a state funeral. For 10 days, a whole nation paid its last respects to the Father of the Nation.
Franck Boutonnet documented this last journey, from Johannesburg, Pretoria and to Kunu, in the Eastern Cape region of South Africa, the ancestral home of Nelson Mandela.
Sarah Dea is a Canadian born, Chinese photographer working from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. She is currently a staff photojournalist at an English language newspaper based out of Abu Dhabi.
"Mohammed" is a portrait series of different men from a variety of different backgrounds, bearing the same name. It is one of the most common given names in the world, yet each Mohammed is unique and has a story to tell.
Saadia Mahmud is a UAE based travel, street and portrait photographer. After 23 years of working in financial markets, she had a meltdown, quit her day job and now only makes pictures.
It's a surprise to all who know Bernard Menettrier de Jolli that he is a photographer. Once you get to know him, you realize he’s shortsighted, astigmatic and color-blind. He’s been a corporate guy for the past 30 years and spends most of his weekends prowling the streets. Bernard enjoys portraits and street photography.
Bernard and Saadia will be presenting a photographic project called Transformation which focuses on the demolition of Dubai's Defence Colony, a housing compound established in early 1970s next to a large military camp in Dubai, primarily for the UAE’s military families.
Anna Marie Nielsen is a Danish photographer based in Dubai. She graduated from a degree in photojournalism in 2012 in the UK and has since divided her time between working on personal projects and commissions for news papers. Her work focuses on social documentary and often focuses on female protagonists.
Anna will be presenting a project titled Young British Converts, which follows the lives of three young British women who are all living a new life as Muslim converts in the UK. Based in the South West of the UK the women are facing the reaction of their conversions from their relatives, friends, colleges and fellow students who all have had a hard time accepting the decision they have made.
Sreeranj Sreedhar is a travel, documentary and culture photographer from the state of Kerala in India currently working and residing in Dubai. His passion lies in creating images that communicate a strong sense of place and cultural awareness of the people and the country.
Sreeranj will be presenting a project about the Vedic School of Kerala, India, one of the oldest institutions in India that continues to teach Vedas (ancient Indian scripts). Located in the heart of Thrissur, Kerala, the research centre is believed to be one of the four Madhas established by Adi Shankara's disciples and is estimated to have been established over 400 years ago.
Larry Towell is an award winning Magnum photographer who has spent a considerable amount of time living with different communities in order to document a theme he describes as 'landlessness'. In 1996 Towell completed a project based on 10 years of reportage in El Salvador, followed the next year by a book on the Palestinians. His fascination with landlessness also led him to the Mennonite migrant workers of Mexico, an 11-year project completed in 2000.
Originating in Europe in the 16th century, the Mennonites are a Protestant religious sect, related to the Amish. Rather than compromise their way of life, they have continually been forced to migrate around the world to maintain their freedom to live as they choose. The greatest numbers are now found in Mexico, and many live or regularly migrate to work in rural Canada. The project Larry will be sharing remotely at Slidefest will be his series on Mennonites in Canada.
* Slidefest is a free community event hosted by Gulf Photo Plus where photographers take the stage to share unique, personal photography projects that run the gamut of genres including landscape and portrait photography, travel and fine art photography and much more. The event also aims to bring photographers (amateurs and pros) and people from the photography community together where people can network, connect and share stories.
www.gulfphotoplus.com/blog/864/GPP-Slidefest-Dubai-Knowledge-Village-Wed-Feb-18-at-7pm