Review
MAGNUM PHOTOS: FIVE DECADES
Curated by Craig Richards
Runs until April 4
Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies (Banff)
Review
BETH WALD: ETERNAL AFGHANISTAN
Runs until April 15
The Banff Centre
An important cross-section of some of the best photojournalism produced in the past 50 years is now being exhibited at the Whyte Museum in Banff. Magnum Photos: Five Decades is a tantalizing glimpse into the archives of what is arguably the world’s most famous news image bank.
Magnum was founded in 1947 by four photographers including Henri Cartier-Bresson and Robert Capa. A photo co-operative, it was designed from its inception to foster and protect the independent vision of the photographers who own it.
Appropriately, Craig Richards, head of photography at the Whyte and curator of this exhibition, has placed a Capa photo at the very beginning of the show. Taken on September 5, 1936, it shows a lone Republican soldier during the Spanish Civil War. Officially titled Loyalist Militiaman at the Moment of Death, this is one of Capa’s most famous and enduring images.
Another seminal Capa image included in the exhibition is a grainy black-and-white shot of American troops landing at dawn on Omaha Beach, Normandy, France on June 6, 1944. Once called "the greatest war photographer," Capa was killed in Indochina while on assignment for Life magazine in 1954.
A powerful Magnum image that continues to be reproduced in hundreds of news magazines is that of the lone protester standing in front of four tanks in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. Taken in 1989 by British photographer Stuart Franklin, this image has come to symbolize the power of one individual who is brave enough to stand up against the injustice and tyranny of a nation.
Although war photography has always been a key component of the work produced by Magnum's photographers, its creative efforts have extended well beyond conflict. Canadian photographer Larry Towell, a full Magnum member since 1993, has travelled the world to capture the social and cultural fabric of groups including the migrant workers of Mexico. He is represented in this exhibition with a poetic image of some young Mennonite women running away from a cloud of dust in Durango, Mexico. It’s a testament to this Ontario-based photographer’s sensitivity and vision.
The work of Magnum’s photographers is not always restricted to serious subject matter. Elliott Erwitt’s photograph Felix, Gladys and Rover, New York City (1974) is a close-up of a woman clad in leather boots flanked by her Great Dane and pet chihuahua. It’s a classic Erwitt image and a style of imagery that he has become synonymous with since producing his book Son of Bitch in 1974.
The photographers who belong to Magnum Photos are said to be part of one of the most exclusive clubs in the world. If it’s true, then membership must come with a generous dose of heart and an extraordinary desire to tell the stories of people no matter where they live or what circumstances they find themselves in.
ETERNAL AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan is re-emerging from almost a quarter-century of war and American photojournalist Beth Wald is showing through her photographs how the indomitable spirit of the Afghan people continues to shine.
Wald, of Boulder Colorado, travelled to Afghanistan in the fall of 2002, only 10 months after the Taliban regime had fallen. On assignment for Smithsonian Magazine, along with writer Rob Schultheis, she spent seven weeks documenting ordinary people who she says remain optimistic about the future of their country.
"The Afghans are incredibly resilient," says Wald as we tour the lobby of The Banff Centre’s Max Bell Auditorium where her framed photographs are currently on display. With the eyes of a photojournalist who knows how to sum up a story in one image, Wald traversed the entire country searching for signs of its proud heritage.
A photograph of two girls in Kabul on their way to school being enveloped by the delicate early morning light works as a straight news photo and a piece of art. The image is emblematic of the one million girls who returned to school in Afghanistan in 2002. But what keeps the viewer lingering is its colours and Wald’s careful composition.
Another photo shows a man and a boy on a motorbike passing by two ancient minarets that were built in the 12th century. Again, it’s a standard news photo, yet its message is more profound: Afghanistan is a country with a religious and cultural history that must be respected.
And that is where the success of this body of work lies. Wald shows her true strength as a photographer not by focusing on the news agenda of the day but by taking a broader view of this place and its people.
"It’s a dusty and brown place yet the people are lighted up," says Wald, who plans to go back there this August. |
Copyright ©2004 FFWD. All rights reserved.