PhotoBooks Africa

By a recent count, the continent of Africa comprises some 1,300 cultures. Some of them number millions of people, some only a few families; some are thriving, while others are in danger of disappearing, the victims of acculturation or, in extreme cases, of genocide. This diversity--and the dangers to it--is little known outside Africa. Photographers Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher highlight both matters in African Ceremonies, an extraordinary two-volume collection of some 850 full-color images. The two artists have traveled to almost all the continent's 53 countries in the last three decades, documenting traditional tribal life in earlier books and articles for National Geographic, among other publications. Here they focus on the religious customs of several dozen peoples, combining stunning images with well-written essays to illustrate the enduring power of traditional beliefs.

Among the book's finest moments are a record of the Fulani cattle crossing, when for 10 days young males drive their herds across the wide Niger River to receive gifts from their grateful compatriots; a sequence showing a healing ceremony of the Himba people of Namibia and Angola, whose "wild women," possessed by lion spirits, are riveting actors on the page; and a remarkable series of photographs of Wodaabe courtship dancers, who compete to attract wives by charming them with exaggerated smiles and the skilled use of cosmetics. The authors note that, as women, they entered places men never could--and as foreigners, they were also often welcomed as "honorary males" and allowed to witness male-only ceremonies. Many of these rites are in danger of extinction as old ways are forgotten and in some cases suppressed. Beckwith and Fisher have captured them before it's too late. Beautifully designed and manufactured, African Ceremonies makes a fine companion to Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s Wonders of the African World, and invites leisurely reading--and constant revisiting. --Gregory McNamee

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This stunning collection of photographs covers five ecosystems -- savannah, woodland, rainforest, wetland, and desert -- and depicts habitat, animals, and human inhabitants for each. The photographs represent 20 trips to Africa over a span of 20 years, including a March 2001 photo safari to Tanzania. Michelle Gilders's five essays accompany Art Wolfe's exquisite photographs and address the pressing need to protect the diversity of each ecosystem.

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In the spring of 2001, photographer Basil Pao accompanied actor (and former Monty Python member) Michael Palin and a BBC film crew into the heart of the world's largest desert--the Sahara. The result of that journey is these remarkable pictures of landscapes and people, taken on a route that covered nine countries and an astonishing variety of cultures. Even when in some of the most hostile conditions known to man, Pao succeeds in capturing the awe-inspiring beauty of the region. Here is Tangier, known for its incredible light; scenic old towns, such as Chefchouen in the Jabala Mountains, barely changed since the 15th century; men, working in tanneries, their bodies balanced over gigantic holes filled with dye; an oil refinery aflame; the River Niger bathed in a golden glow; the beautiful faces of pastoral nomads; the magnificent glory of endless sand dunes; and other unforgettable pictures. Plus: behind the scene photos of Michael Palin and the film crew.

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Reprising the years-long, in-depth collaboration that produced much of National Geographic magazineÃŒs coverage of southern Africa, award-winning photographer Chris Johns and veteran foreign correspondent Peter Godwin present this important critical exploration of the region’s myriad facets and its collisions between tradition and modernity, conservation and development, and people and animals.

In evocative photographs and accompanying anecdotal text, Wild at Heart criscrosses southern Africa—from the Kalahari Desert and Drakensburg Mountains to the Skeleton coast and Zambesi River—to reveal its diverse populations and wildlife and highlight their often unacknowledged interdependence. Johns’s superb photographs of wildlife, including cheetahs, rhinos, elephants, and his sensitive portraits of Himba pastoralists, San Bushmen hunter-gatherers, Zulu farmers, and other populations are combined with Godwin’s passionate, lyric stories that both entertain and enlighten. The result is a finely detailed yet panoramic image of southern Africa that underscores the indissoluble connections between all its elements and speculates on the prospects for a future based on understanding those connections. Beautifully presented in a unique, oversize format with a top-opening spine that allows gallery-quality presentation of the images, Wild at Heart is destined to become a classic.

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A gifted photographer's arresting color pictures bring to life the majestic mountains, lush oases, great shifting sands, and fascinating peoples that make up the incredible landscapes of the famous Sahara.

"The desert cannot be described; it must be lived," states the Saharan nomad whose text opens this sensitive appreciation of the world's largest desert. For readers who will never experience that reality, this volume's stunning photographs and engrossing text will evoke its essence. From Timbuktu and its legendary gold riches to Tuareg nomads and their battles with European expeditions for control of the land, the book unfolds the Sahara's dramatic history of exploration and exploitation. Added to this background are thrilling personal accounts written by explorers, naturalists, and journalists whose own tales of adventure and survival in the ever-changing environment of the Sahara match the passion and sense of wonder conveyed in Durou's photographs.

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Another Africa is a book that fuses photographs, poetry, and text to create a view of present-day Africa that moves beyond the stereotypes commonly held by most westerners: an open-air ethnographic museum, a continent in constant turmoil, a vast expanse of beautiful sand dunes and tropical savannas where herds of wildlife roam. This work peels away myths to explore the complexity, diversity, and human dimensions of a place called Africa--one that celebrates the commonplace and exotic simultaneously. The photographs are highly subjective, a personal investigation that reflects the sensibilities, formal concerns, and the ongoing engagement of the photographer in this part of the world.

With the brilliant Chinua Achebe--a Nigerian--contributing his poems and an essay, the book takes on a further and critical dimension. He presents a concise view of Africa today, including the individual and political issues facing its countries. He deals with Africa on its own terms--from within, not from an outsider's perspective.

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Terra incognito? Heart of darkness? How about "stylish continent," as some magazine once wrote? The gigantic landmass that is Africa, over which a colonial shadow still looms, is a territory of projections and misunderstandings. The West African photographers presented in "Flash Afrique!" tell stories about the tension between dreams and reality. Elaborately arranged studio portraits reveal how Africa sees itself. Documentary images comment on the sheer craziness of overpopulated cities. And conversations with the photographers open up an art scene only recently begun to emerge from shadow.

Edited by Gerald Matt, Thomas Miessgang. Essays by Olu Oguibe, Koyo Kouoh, Simon Njami. Photographers include: Philip Kwame Apagya, Dorris Haron Kasco, Seydou Keita, Boubacar Toure Mandemory, Bouna Medoune Seye, Malick Sidibe.

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