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The 2023 Monochrome Photography Awards Have Revealed The Best Black And White Images

The 2023 Monochrome Photography Awards Have Revealed The Best Black And White Images

#1

3rd Place In The Wildlife Category: “Baby Back” By Baiju Patil, India

“This photo was taken at Daruji National Park Karnataka India. This photo was taken while the mother was walking down the rock, but the cub was not ready to get off her back. When she was coming down, she literally cried like a baby and quickly climbed onto her mother’s back.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#2

1st Place In The Wildlife Category: “Our Kingdom” By James Lewin, Kenya

“Lions have been momentous symbols to humankind for thousands of years. Their bravery, strength, courage, loyalty, and close family bonds have inspired millions of people in their day-to-day lives. My aim in Ndutu this year was to create a group portrait that would resonate with and connect us to this most iconic mammal and highlight their noble qualities.

For a worthy portrait to materialise, I needed the subject, location, composition, light, background, and sky to come together simultaneously, which, of course, is totally out of my control. These few and far-between split seconds have become what I search long and hard for. There is simply no better feeling than when it all pays off.

I am especially drawn to how the proud noble gaze of the lion represents the stability and leadership that dominant males bring to a pride and how the intent stare of the lioness reminds us of their loyalty to the pride and powerful hunting capabilities. It brings a subtle balance to the frame, highlighting the inspiring qualities of such a famous and highly regarded species.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

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#3

1st Place In The Street Category: “Snowfall” By Beata Zawrzel, Poland

“A boy plays in the snow after sudden and intense snowfall following rather mild first month of winter. Kraków, Poland on February 3, 2023.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#4

2nd Place In The Street Category: “Bubble Fun” By Tebani Slade, Spain

“I came across this bubble thrower on my walk home one afternoon. For the small change they make from donations, they bring so much joy to children who jump and dance to pop the bubbles as they float into the air. It’s a magical feeling.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#5

3rd Place In The Nature Category: “Love Language” By Fenqiang Liu, United States

“On a serene spring morning in Central Florida in 2020, a majestic Great Egret gracefully returned to its nest, where its young baby egret had patiently waited. I was privileged to observe and document the profound and tender bond between parents and offspring through my camera lens.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#7

1st Place In The Landscapes Category: “Dust-Laden Hooves: Saga Of The Volcanic Riders” By Mahendra Bakle, India

“The Tenggerese people, known as ‘The Horsemen of Bromo’ in Indonesia, embody a captivating cultural legacy in the stunning landscape surrounding Mount Bromo. Their vibrant customs and role as horseback guides create an immersive experience for visitors exploring the volcanic terrains. These horsemen, with their traditional attire and deep-rooted rituals, offer travelers not just a ride but an encounter with the rich heritage of the region.”

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#8

Monochrome Discovery Of The Year 2023: “My Kingdom” By Simon Biddie, United Kingdom

“Male California sea lions are distinct from female sea lions; they are larger in size, have thick necks and possess a protruding, grey sagittal crest. During mating season the dominant males become territorial and protect their harem, which can be up to 30 females. This male bursts through a shoal of sardines, with his harem seen behind him. At Los Islotes, in the Espiritu Santo National Park, Mexico, the California sea lion has been protected under Mexican law since 1994. As part of the Islas del Golfo de California Flora and Fauna Protection Area (APFF-IGC), the area is a no-take zone enforced by La Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP), which positively impacts predators’ food sources such as sardine shoals. Espiritu Santo Island is a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2005 and was declared a National Marine Park in 2007. Thanks to these efforts, the sea lion colony at Los Islotes has expanded and is estimated at 400 – 800 individuals, making it now one of the most stable colonies in the area. While restricting direct human activity has hugely benefited the California sea lion population in Espiritu Santo.”

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#9

3rd Place In The Photojournalism Category: “Rapa Das Bestas” By Hans-Maximo Musielik, Mexico

“The entire body of work was taken along 4-5 months between April and August of 2022 in different parts of the Val Miñor region in Galicia, Spain. This photo in particular was taken at the Torroña “curro” in Pontevedra on June 5th, 2022. The “Rapa das Bestas” or “shaving of the beasts” is a Galician tradition that takes place every summer on different dates and places mostly along the Galician southern rural mountainous areas. Basically the horses are rounded up and locals in a comunal effort, drive them to the “curros” which are mostly stonewalled rodeo-like structures, where their manes and tails are shaved, dewormed and mandatory microchips are implanted on the newly born foals. After all these processes they are let go to roam freely for another full year. I wanted to document the entire process in different locations where different catching technics were applied. The picture shows just a part of “curro” where horses have been rounded up. For obvious reasons I immediately identified the white horse from the rest of the herd and snapped a couple of pictures.”

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#12

2nd Place In The Wildlife Category: “Untitled” By Andre Estevez, United States

“I shot this humpback whale lunge feeding in Monterey bay, California the humpback lunge fed way to close from the boat and I was only able to get close details of the mouth.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#13

1st Place In The Photomanipulation Category: “Yin” By Bella Von Einsiedel, Germany

“Part of my series ‘YIN & YANG’.

A series that shows the connection between human beings, nature and the balance of the universe. The bright side and the dark side of life, which belong together and therefore cannot be viewed separately. What would Yin be without Yang? Would we appreciate the light without knowing the darkness? It’s always darkest before the dawn.”

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#15

1st Place In The Nude Category: “Monolith” By Lukasz Spychala, Poland

“Man seems to us to be a stable, uniform whole, hard as a rock, just like the title monolith. We forget, however, that, like rocks, we are often formed by erosion. We can get used to bad experiences, accept that they have become an inseparable part of ourselves and turn them into a strong side of our personality.”

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#16

1st Place In The Nature Category: “Winter Story” By Bin Zhang, China

“This is Inner Mongolia, China. The filming location is located in Ulan Butong Grassland. A horse stands in the early morning snowstorm, waiting for its owner.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#17

3rd Place In The Landscapes Category: “Aphairesi – Study 14” By René Algesheimer, Switzerland

“The Greek word for abstraction is αφαίρεση (aphairesi), which means “removal” or “withdrawal”. This term is often used in the context of philosophy to refer to the process of abstracting or separating an idea or concept from its concrete or sensory representations. In art, abstraction can also refer to the process of reducing a form or image to its essential geometric or formal elements, which can then be rearranged and recombined to create a new visual language.

The project follows Clement Greenberg’s idea of abstract expressionism. As a mathematician, through this project, I hope to challenge viewers to see the world in a new way, to appreciate the beauty and complexity of geometric forms, and to consider the ways in which the language of geometry can be used to express a wide range of emotions and experiences.

Death Valley, 2020″

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#18

1st Place In The Fine Art Category: “We Are Part Of Nature” By Markéta Novak Leupoldová, Czech Republic

“Sometimes we tend to forget that we are an integral part of nature.

In my photographs, I create compositions where I blend man with nature. This creates a unified image where man and nature merge into one motif.
With this work I strengthen the current theme of man and nature.”

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#19

3rd Place In The Fashion/Beauty Category: “A Girl With Tin Foil” By Xiayu(Renee) Li, United States

“I was inspired to create a captivating photo series featuring a beautiful girl adorned with tin foil, as I found the combination to be intriguing. To enhance the dramatic effect, I crafted tin foil decorations specifically for the girl, transforming her appearance into a mesmerizing and striking portrayal.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#20

1st Place In The Architecture Category: “Future Past” By Mario Tarantino, Spain

“This photo was taken at the Taal Monument located in Paarl, South Africa. The brutalist architecture of the monument is typical of the 70’s. The monument commemorates Afrikaans being declared an official language of South Africa separate from Dutch.

The silhouetted person (who is my father) is demonstrating scale, creating a mood and story as well as contributing to making the image surreal.

In both the composition and post processing of the image I wished to convey an outer worldly feel. A place of importance, a central meeting point or perhaps a place of worship. In searching to further develop surreality, the processing of the images has been done in black and white.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#21

Monochrome Photographer Of The Year 2023 And 1st Place In The Portrait Category: “An Acid Attack Survivor (Portrait At The Taj Mahal)” By Érico Hiller , Brazil

“An Acid Attack Survivor (Portrait at the Taj Mahal). In my work for my new book about women, I was in Agra, India, and I was able to meet countless women like Geeta, in the photo, who posed for me, a timeless and disturbing portrait, which shows a trace of the violence and intolerance of our time.”

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#23

1st Place In The Fashion/Beauty Category: “A Chinese Minority Girl” By Xiayu(Renee) Li, United States

“I took this picture of a Chinese minority girl who is living in the US. It’s important to learn and appreciation for the beauty of cultural diversity, especially those that may not receive as much attention or recognition as others. By understanding and respecting diverse cultures, we can promote greater understanding and empathy among people from different backgrounds.”

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#24

1st Place In The Conceptual Category: “Jesters Gender Game” By Austn Fischer, United Kingdom

“Jesters Gender Game, a celebration of historical queer artists’ fearless exploration of gender performance. This photographic project draws inspiration from visionaries like Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore, who challenged gender norms through provocative self-portraits. This project embodies the concept of “gender performance” by Judith Butler, illuminating the idea that gender is a socially constructed performance shaped by cultural expectations.

Through a vibrant tapestry of clothing, makeup, and body language, participants in Jesters Gender Game craft intricate narratives of identity and liberation. The photographs playfully reveal how clothing influences societal perceptions, determining individual personas. It encourages viewers to reflect on their assumptions and embrace the richness of human expression.

A fusion of history, gender theories, and humor, “Jesters Gender Game” invites us to celebrate the beauty of diversity and embrace our authentic selves.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#25

3rd Place In The Architecture Category: “Nabatea” By Nigel Malone, Australia

“The name of this image comes from the Nabateans – an ancient culture you might be more familiar with for their Architecture sculpted in stone at Petra in Jordan. They also travelled to what is now the remote deserts of Arabia, where this photograph was taken. For this image shot on film, I used a vintage rangefinder camera. I wanted a similar feel as the historic black and white images from the time of the discovery of the great pyramids, the time of Howard Carter – that can only come from vintage lenses.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#26

2nd Place In The Architecture Category: “National Theatre Luminosity Ballet” By Thomas Maguire, United Kingdom

“Image taken of the famous Brutalist National Theatre in London. A ballet of luminosity which makes the structure all the more beautiful and appreciated.”

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#27

3rd Place In The Street Category: “17 And A Half Monks” By Marcelo Silva

“About 4 million tourists pass through the enigmatic galleries and streets of Angkor Wat each year, stopping just long enough to take a selfie before continuing their frenetic pursuit of the next attraction the Kingdom of Cambodia can offer them.
Far removed from this madness are the monks who, although they seem to emerge from the very bowels of the temples, are in fact also tourists passing through Angkor. Unlike the hundreds of loud and hurried foreigners who pass them brusquely by (thus protagonizing a rare, live time lapse), the monks silently occupy every alley until they establish a connection without which, it seems, they can advance no further. In this way, slowly, they blend into the carvings on the walls, doors and hollows until they become part of the landscape and [seem to] disappear into the largest religious structure ever built.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#28

3rd Place In The Photomanipulation Category: “Marvellini Vogue” By Collective Foto Marvellini, Italy

“Concept
Last works of the italian collective Foto Marvellini deal with the phenomenon of ‘Fashion’, easily demonstrating how this is only apparently a superfluous feature of any civilization. In fact, it’s the “modus” that affirms aesthetic and cultural style, at a particular historical moment and in a defined geographical area, in order to adopt elements of internal cohesion within a group of distinction with respect to others. Denying with photographic evidence the chronologies of the past styles, inevitably, leads one to question the entire civilisation and mentality of the women and men of that period. Because even unconsciously, we know that Fashion is influenced by external factors such as, for example, technology and economics (which have an impact on the way it evolves over time) and by historical and political events (sometimes simply related to the availability and use of materials).

Technique
Digital processing from originals photos on glass by C.M. Bell (a Washington portrait photographer, little known but very prolific in the second half of the 19th century) granted by the US Library of Congress. Digital restoration, postproduction, insertion of contemporary elements with studio shooting and computer-generated textiles. Darkroom prints on Bergger Wart-Tone baryta paper with silver salts in limited edition of 5, each one mounted in antique frames with anti-reflection glass (max. sheet size cm. 50X60).”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

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#29

2nd Place In The Photojournalism Category: “Jugglers” By Natalia Gorshkova

“This story about people who fallen into a difficult life situation. People who don’t give up and find opportunity for a full life. Surgeries, rehabilitation, depression and despair led them to the search for another ways and other meaning for life in new circumstances.
The top of the self-sacrificing desire to conquer the tragic situation for them becomes a playing in basketball. For people who braving itself and who coming to the sports ground to fight and win it’s a kind of challenge to fate.
As a photographer I’m aimed to find such visual solution which tells the audience what stands behind those victories. I sought not to show the inferiority, but how much strength, patience and infinite possibilities lurk within each of us.

The main idea is to show healthy people and people with traumas that our body is just an outer shell which doesn’t mean anything to what we really are.
It shouldn’t have any influence on the quality of life and impose restrictions on our lifestyle.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#30

3rd Place In The Conceptual Category: “Aphonic” By Chandler Williams, United States

“This image is called Aphonic, meaning silent or without a voice.

I’m connected with all my pieces on an emotional level and this one in particular is deeper than the other ones. This is my first piece that I have conceptualized and it really comes from a deep personal part of who I am and who I want to become.

Aphonic is based around the idea of showing the beauty of mother nature while highlighting the problems plastic and trash have created and how we are slowly destroying our environment.

I chose to work with designer Candi Gordon, a recent SCAD graduate, whose focus in the fashion industry is sustainability. When we first collaborated I knew that she was the right designer for this project. As you can see, the Aphonic custom dresses are the result of unbelievable hands-on tailoring. The dresses are made out of recycled plastics, fishing string, hook leaders, and other items.

The idea was to show the beauty of the model without being too obvious with loose plastic and other trash. We wanted the plastics to be subtle, just like environmental concerns can sometimes be, while on a beautiful model and we achieved it.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#31

2nd Place In The Conceptual Category: “Horror Movies Story” By Hardi Budi, Indonesia

“Have you ever seen a horror movie? What’s your reaction when you watch a scary scene? This picture series is a Metaphor, tells about how people reacts when they watching a Horror Movie. The photoshoot was taken in an old theatre in Jakarta.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#32

3rd Place In The Abstract Category: “Oyster Mushroom 6” By Dale M Reid, Canada

“Initially, the oyster mushroom captured my imagination and I have since added other wild varieties as subject material. My creative vision uses their bizarre and varied shape, alien textures, and intricate detail combined with composition and lighting to present crisp images with a dose of abstraction. Abstraction makes them unique and opens them to multiple interpretations depending on the viewer’s imagination to use their personal memories and life experiences to build content.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#33

1st Place In The Abstract Category: “Poetry Of Silence Xxvi-7” By Roland Blum, Liechtenstein

“Poetry of Silence is an ongoing body of aerial desert photography created in the Namib Desert. This photograph was created in the southern Namib near the rugged Atlantic coast, where these constantly changing abstract patterns and structures are being shaped by the elements.

The picture was taken from about 1500 meters over the ground flying with a helicopter.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#34

3rd Place In The Fine Art Category: “Untitled” By Jaroslav Šimandl, Czech Republic

“I create as much as possible in reality, only minor corrections with photoshop. I’m looking for new perspectives on hidden connections. Some inspiration: graphics, architecture, renaissance, music…”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#36

3rd Place In The Portrait Category: “Smoking Man” By Ien Yamasaki, Thailand

“Portrait of smoking old man take a break from transportation and watch over Chinese shrine near Chaophraya river in Bangkok, Thailand. Transportation via river is common in Bangkok and can be tiresome work during hot summer day.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#37

2nd Place In The Portrait Category: “Back To You” By Giandomenico Veneziani, Italy

“I’m on a mission.
My world is dying, everything around me loses life force.
Everything fades away and the battle for survival is turning into hatred and pain.
I travel in search of a solution. I have no destination, there is no point of arrival. I move around trying to capture the essence of rebirth.
There is a gap in front of me, I think it’s a door: through it… suddenly a wave submerges me. I am about to drown and I know that I have to swim hard to emerge from these strange and rushing waters. I close my eyes and when I open them again I find myself floating on a body of water.
I don’t know where I am, this new world is different from mine.
I’m tired, but with the little strength I have left I try to emerge from this sea. I think my journey cannot end with a surrender. My only purpose is to be able to save my fellow men, my mind is pervaded only by this goal.
I wander through unknown and hostile lands. The heat suffocates me and that big star on the horizon burns my skin. I’m about to give up. My appearance has changed, my shape is no longer the same. I know it’s still me, even if I have a hard time recognizing myself.
At one point, bordering on desperation, I notice something: a light calls me insistently, it scares me, but at the same time it fascinates me.
Slowly I approach.
The voice of the light becomes more and more intense. My body shakes.
Here she is!
That light takes possession of me, it enters by tearing my skin. No pain. I can perceive serenity and harmony. My body has new energy. It pervades me, it flows.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

#38

2nd Place In The Fine Art Category: “Peace” By Małgorzata Fober, Poland

“The photograph “Peace” was created for the needs of the author’s calendar entitled “Everything in our hands”. This is one of the 13 photographs that make up the series of photographs depicting animals rescued by me. Each animal is shown in the company of human hands, people, people who visited my home at that time.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

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#40

2nd Place In The Photomanipulation Category: “The Skull” By Alexander Sviridov, Canada

“The human skull made out of female models, offering a unique perspective on beauty and mortality.”

Monochrome Photography Awards Report

Corunna photographer’s work recognized by Canadian Geographic

Corunna photographer’s work recognized by Canadian Geographic

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Corunna’s Shaun Antle crossed a goal off his list this year.

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Antle earned an honourable mention in Canadian Geographic’s 2023 Canadian Photos of the Year competition for his image of a great blue heron diving into Canatara Park’s Lake Chipican.

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A financial adviser by day, Antle has been taking photos for years and runs a sideline business he named Oh Me Nerves Photography.

“I snagged that shot on the north side of Lake Chipican July 13 of last year,” he said.

“That particular guy, he was doing his thing, just looking for some dinner,” Antle said.

“I was just laying on my stomach following him along. I was going for the shot right where they dive into the water.”

Later, while downloading the images, he saw he had one with water covering the heron’s eyes, but the eyes were still visible.

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“Pretty cool,” he said.

Shaun Antle
This photo by Corunna’s Shaun Antle of a great blue heron diving into Lake Chipican earned an honourable mention in Canadian Geographic’s 2023 Canadian Photos of the Year competition. Photo by OH ME NERVES PHOTOGRAPHY O/B SHAUN ANTLE /Handout

The Sarnia area has a large population of birds and waterfowl, but photographing them takes patience, Antle said.

“It’s hours and hours of laying in ditches and sitting in a blind,” he said.

Antle said he has been taking photos for 25 years now but “about 10 years ago, I got a little bit more serious with it.”

After someone asked to buy one of his images, Antle said he began putting his work in front of the public more often, including entering competitions and juried shows.

He submitted more than 20 mages last year to Canadian Geographic and learned in December his image of the great blue heron was selected as a finalist, and then in January Canadian Geographic announced it received an honorable mention in a Wildlife in Action category.

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There were more than 8,000 entries, according to Canadian Geographic.

“It was one of those moments where it’s like, ‘are you kidding me?’ I still am pinching myself,” he said.

Having a photo featured by Canadian Geographic was one of his photography goals and the recognition “is humbling,” he said.

“Someday the dream is to work for National Geographic.”

But Antle said he feels some “imposter syndrome” because he didn’t go to school to study photography. “It has always been a hobby.”

Despite that, he has been doing more recently to show his work, including exhibiting at Gallery in the Grove, teaching and public speaking.

Antle grew up in the Sarnia area, but his family is from Newfoundland and that’s where he spent most of his summers as a youngster.

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He used a Newfoundland expression when it came time to name his photography business.

Antle said he always had some sort of camera growing up. “I loved taking pictures of friends and family, and places that we went.”

It wasn’t until 2009 that he bought his first good camera and lens and took photos while he and his wife were travelling back to Sarnia through the U.S. after living in Western Canada.

Antle said now he takes all kinds of photos, including commercial work. “I only thing I don’t do is weddings. I wouldn’t touch that with a 10-foot pole,” he said.

“My bread and butter, so to speak, is wildlife.”

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This Week in Flyers

Celebrity photographer hosts first gallery back in his home city on the far eastside

Celebrity photographer hosts first gallery back in his home city on the far eastside

INDIANAPOLIS — Over NBA All-Star weekend the inside of P30 on Indy’s east side was transformed in to a photo gallery.

Celebrity photographer John Canon was back home putting on his first showcase called Shooting for the Stars. Canon grew up on the east side.

“I don’t think the Far Eastside really discriminates. You got the good, the bad, you got opportunities. I feel like it’s pretty diverse,” said Canon.

For the last 8 years, Canon has been working as a celebrity photographer. His passion for photographer started at Warren Central High School and continued on after graduation in Chicago.

“I had gotten the opportunity to shoot a cancer in Chicago for Travis Scott, Young Thug, and Metro Boomin. I took video at the concert, but I used screenshots from it and people picked up on it as if it was actually photos and from there I just never stopped,” Canon said.

After being in Chicago, Canon used social media to network and found his way to Atlanta.

“Indianapolis native DJ Champ gave me the opportunity to document him at QC Studio and kind of like kicked off me getting my foot in the door in Atlanta,” Canon said.

Canon works with a lot music artists now and is the personal photographer for 21 Savage.

“That was my first opportunity to being an artists personal photographer,” Canon said.

The photo gallery at P30 showcased his eight year journey to get to where he is now, but was also about giving back.

“He’s been able to go places I’ve never been able to go,” Dennis Jarret, Canon’s high school teacher, said.

Jarrett also now runs 100 Cameras for 100 Kids, a new program that is providing under served youth the chance to learn photography.

Canon’s first gallery raised money for the organization.

A sensual portrait of young people in Bolsonaro-era Brazil

A sensual portrait of young people in Bolsonaro-era Brazil

William Rice’s O Novo Rio is a homage to the resistance, agency and style of Brazil’s queer youth

19February 2024

There’s an image of a young woman kneeling down in a river. She’s wearing a mask that harks back to centuries-old Brazilian folklore and a shirt for the country’s national football team. This study in contrasts – an older, spiritual tradition alongside a more contemporary, secular one – embodies a deep, political tension.

Photographer William Rice, whose new publication O Novo Rio explores this tension through portraits of people in Rio de Janeiro, who are captured in states of bliss, intimacy, and beauty. Rice, who has been travelling to Rio for almost a decade, took the pictures that would become O Novo Rio in the midst of populist president Jair Bolsonaro’s time in office; a period of far-right politics that were actively homophobic and transphobic. This is one of the reasons why, as Rice puts it, “the Brazil shirt, to me, worn in this kind of environment, shot by someone like me, styled by someone like Rafaela [Pinah] is strongly about resistance.”

Rice explains that Bolsonaro – Brazil’s president from 2019 to 2022 – and his followers adopted the nation’s football shirt as a kind of political uniform. “It became like the Make America Great Again hat,” the photographer tells Dazed. Rice recalls that this made the Brazilian football shirt become “really ugly”, in stark contrast to his own understanding of what the shirt meant historically. “When I watched the Brazilian football team in the 80s and 90s, there was such an unbelievable set of players […] and anyone could wear a Brazilian football shirt, in or out of Brazil – male, female, gay, straight. And Bolsonaro horribly politicised it. So to have a trans stylist put a young Brazilian woman in that football shirt was, to me, a fuck you move.”

A lot of O Novo Rio ties back to Rice’s own experiences as a young queer person; Rice says that he “didn’t feel entirely comfortable in [his] own queerness until [his] mid-to-late twenties”; showing queer spaces in this zine became a kind of antidote for that adolescent loneliness and a way to make sure others don’t get lost in what Rice called the “dislocating” feelings of growing up alone and queer. Instead, the Brazillian models featured in Rice’s monograph – most of whom are in their late tweens and early-to-mid 20s – possess what the photographer describes as “incredible amounts of agency over their own presentation and their own queerness, and part of me is kind of in awe of them.” Again, O Novo Rio becomes a kind of study in contrasts; as Rice puts it: “people are in really difficult social and political circumstances, but it will never stop them being themselves.” 

Rice describes much of this work – even the more stylised, produced images within it – as a documentary on Rio’s young people at this specific moment in time. The photographer explains that some of the awe and respect he has for the people in these pictures comes from the fact that they “live with much more agency than I was when I was their age”. Reflecting on the status of being an outsider, he writes in the introduction to the book, “This whole book is informed by an innate sense of being an outsider… When you’re queer, you’re automatically an outsider.” But he insists that this status comes with the need to treat everyone with the “respect of being in someone else’s house”.

An important aspect of the book is the photographer’s collaborations with stylists such as Rafaela Pinah and the impact they have on the work. He says that this outsider status means noticing things that you might “take for granted” while on the inside. For Rice, this meant recognising how a group of queer people might talk to each other or carry themselves. O Novo Rio becomes a celebration of these people, and Rice hopes that it can not only celebrate their agency, but also “make sure that we don’t move backwards, because there’s a lot of people that want us to move backwards”.

William Rice’s O Novo Rio is available in store at DSM now.

See Early 20th-Century Big Bend Through the Lens of Photographer W.D. Smithers

See Early 20th-Century Big Bend Through the Lens of Photographer W.D. Smithers
A trail of horses and wagons traverses the Rio Grande

Mules from U.S. Army Pack Train No. 9 cross the Rio Grande to return to Texas in Lajitas in 1918. Photo courtesy W.D. Smithers Photography Collection, Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin

In one of his pictures documenting life in far West Texas, photographer Wilfred Dudley (W.D.) Smithers shows a water-delivery boy in Presidio using a can to scoop water from the Rio Grande into a canvas bag draped over a burro’s back. The bag is waterproofed by locally made candelilla wax, and a cow horn serves as its spigot.

In another, a pack train comprising more than 20 mule-drawn wagons navigates the rugged Candelaria Rim southwest of Marfa. Against a backdrop of desert mountains, the teams carefully descend 1,700 feet of switchbacks as they journey to villages and U.S. Cavalry outposts along the river.

“For me, the packer life offered opportunity for countless fascinating observations, some of which I found time to photograph,” Smithers reflected in his 1976 book, Chronicles of the Big Bend: A Photographic Memoir of Life on the Border. “A photographer couldn’t ask for better subjects than the packer and cavalry life, or the natural beauties of the Big Bend.”

But cavalry and wagons represent only a fraction of the subjects Smithers documented in the first half of the 20th century in the Big Bend region of West Texas and Mexico. A self-described “freelance news reporter,” Smithers lived in the area periodically from 1916 until his death in 1981 and spent years exploring the landscape and meeting its people. And at a time when cameras were rare, he captured thousands of images, using an innovative hand-built camera. Designed for portability, it provided a rare perspective on the isolated borderlands.

“I think of Smithers as our resident photographic anthropologist,” says David Keller, an Alpine-based archeologist and historian. “His work on the mule trains put him in a unique position to document that time around the Mexican Revolution. We’d be impoverished without his legacy.”

A lampshade with a scene of a wagon train and horses on it

Smithers printed photographs onto lampshades, many of which are now held at UT Austin’s Harry Ransom Center. Photo by Brandon Jakobeit

Smithers processed his images in makeshift darkrooms, drew maps and diagrams of packing systems, and took copious notes about life in the Big Bend. In the late 1960s, Smithers sold his collection for $20,000 to the University of Texas at Austin. Kept at the Harry Ransom Center, the archive contains some 9,000 images with subjects ranging from quicksilver mines to desert wildlife and cacti, Mexican bandits, and the construction of McDonald Observatory. The photos also show the daily living conditions of borderlands people—f­arming and goat herding families; curanderos, or healers, gathering medicinal plants; and soldiers rodeoing on holidays.

“The most important thing is being there,” says Jim Bones, a renowned Big Bend landscape photographer. “He had a vision of what was happening at the border. It was changing very rapidly, and he was intent on capturing it. It seemed like where anything was happening, he was there. He was so prolific, it’s as though he never slept.”

A young person holds a bucket next to a burro wearing a large saddle

A Mexican boy fills up a canvas with water from the Rio Grande in Presidio in 1917. Photo courtesy W.D. Smithers Photography Collection, Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin

Smithers, who was fluent in Spanish, credited his childhood in Mexico and San Antonio for his interest in Mexican culture and the Big Bend. He was born in 1895 in San Luis Potosí, where his father was a bookkeeper for the American Smelting and Refining Company. Smithers’ mother died when he was 5, and the family moved to San Antonio when he was 10.

Smithers attended school for only seven years, according to W.D. Smithers, ­Photographer-Journalist, a master’s thesis written by Mary Katherine Cook in 1975, based partly on interviews with Smithers. As a teen, he worked delivering ice blocks by horse-drawn wagon and in road construction; in the afternoons, he volunteered at San Antonio photography shops.

In his memoir, Smithers recounted the kindness of Mexican families when he was most in need. Curanderos nursed him back to health when he suffered from typhoid as a child in Mexico and later jaundice and heat stroke as an adult in West Texas.

“When he photographed any of the people down along the river, he would come back and give them a copy of the image,” says Mary Bones, director of Alpine’s Museum of the Big Bend and Jim’s wife. “He worked on developing relationships and making people feel comfortable with him, that he wasn’t there just to take stuff from them.”

A black and white picture of a man sitting in a studio underneath an ornately-decorated lampshade

In the 1960s, Smithers sold his photo collection and extensive notes to the University of Texas. Photo courtesy W.D. Smithers Photography Collection, Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin

Given the price of photography equipment when he was starting out in San Antonio, Smithers built his own camera. He designed it to be lightweight and portable, ideal for fieldwork. He used his camera for decades and built a second version after the first broke. In a caption he wrote for the Ransom Center collection, he said a company called Printex created a camera modeled after his version in 1948.

Smithers became a pioneer of aerial photography in the 1910s. He practiced his craft at the Army airfields in San Antonio, riding in the rear cockpit and sometimes hiring pilots to take him up for commercial jobs. During his enlistment in the Army from 1917-19, he was stationed in California where he helped “train pilots in simulated dogfights with the use of a camera that looked and acted like a machine gun,” Cook wrote. By 1923, back in Texas, Smithers was the “leading aerial photographer in San Antonio.”

Aerial photography was also part of Smithers’ work in the Big Bend, and his experience helped him land a job in 1935 with Immigration and Border Patrol. The agency hired Smithers to document the entire 1,951-mile U.S.-Mexico border from the mouth of the Rio Grande near Brownsville to the Pacific Coast in California.
Smithers photographed the 258 official markers along the border and produced 2,000 images over four months. Along the way, Smithers noticed that local villages always knew he was coming. He attributed this to one of his longtime fascinations—avisos, or flash signals created with a mirror or other shiny object to communicate across distances.

“Every Mexican and Indian I encountered was friendly and knew why I was in their area,” Smithers wrote. “The avisos concerning el fotografo must have increased in frequency and amiability as my trip progressed, for the farther I went, the more friendly the natives were.”

A small figurine of a wagon train

Photo by Brandon Jakobeit

Picture This

View Smithers’ works at these Texas locations

In Alpine, the Museum of the Big Bend employs W.D. Smithers’ work to illustrate regional history. It also explores his legacy with an exhibit on his biography and a sampling of his photos. The Smithers exhibit features one of the lamps he produced at his Alpine shop in the 1940s and ’50s. The base of the lamp is a wooden wagon, and the shade, shaped like a wagon covering, is a picture of cowboys branding a calf. In the museum’s mining exhibit, Smithers’ photos of quicksilver mines in Terlingua show the difficulty of the underground work; and in the frontier exhibit, one photo gives insight into the equipment used by the cavalry. Open Tue-Sat 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on the Sul Ross State University campus, 400 N. Harrison St., Alpine. ­museumofthebigbend.com

In Terlingua, Smithers photos adorn roadside signs commissioned by Visit Big Bend to depict the history of the area. visitbigbend.com

The Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin holds Smithers’ archives, including thousands of photographs, manuscripts, photography equipment, and lampshades. Open to the public Tue-Fri 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sat-Sun 12-5 p.m.; for private viewing Mon-Sat 9 a.m.-5 p.m. 300 W. 21st St., Austin.
hrc.utexas.edu

By 1936, Smithers had opened a photo shop in Alpine. Initially, he focused on making glass lantern slides of Mexican churches and archeological sites, but he eventually pivoted to photo lampshades to showcase his work.

According to Cook’s thesis, Smithers printed images on a parchment-like material in his kitchen, and his employees colored the prints by hand and laced them onto an iron frame. The shades, which he sold in his Alpine shop and shipped across the country, featured Smithers’ photography of scenes like desert mountains, cacti, and cowboys.

Carl C. Williams, then a Sul Ross College student, got a job printing lampshades for Smithers in his darkroom in 1951. Later, when Williams was sheriff of Brewster County, he visited Smithers daily for two weeks to help him catalog his negatives before selling the collection to UT.

“Whenever I worked alongside him on an assignment or on a job, I always thought I did a pretty good job—until I saw his photos,” recalls Williams, who is also a photographer.

UT administrators heard of Smithers’ massive photo collection from the late Austin-based historian Kenneth Ragsdale, who met Smithers in 1966 while researching Terlingua quicksilver mines. That meeting set in motion the university’s purchase of the collection.

In the foreword to Smithers’ memoir, Ragsdale recounted a visit he made to Alpine to pick up photo boxes and deliver a check to Smithers. “I asked him, ‘Bill, since this is probably the most money you have ever had at one time, are you going to retire?’” Ragsdale wrote.

“Nope,” Smithers responded. “I’m going to buy me a new camera.”