In the Picture with Guillaume Bonn November 14, 2006

Madagascan-born French photographer Guillaume Bonn talks about his photographic journey through Africa, documenting the continent’s many complexities and contradictions.

“So many people have tried to define the feeling the French call mal d’Afrique which in fact is a disease. The English never had a definition for it, I guess, because they never liked to admit that they were being threatened in any way by this continent. Obviously, because they preferred the idea of ruling it rather than being ruled by it”.

Gillaume Bonn spent the last 10 years photographing Africa. His pictures explore its painful history as well as his family’s role in that history. He grapples with the many challenges Africa faces in the future in holding onto its traditions, maintaining its natural beauty and struggling with urban sprawl.

Guillaume is a regular contributor to The New York Times and Vanity Fair. While working on his book Le mal d’Afrique: a Journey into Old and New Africa he travelled across the continent from war-torn Congo and Darfur to Mogadishu, where he was shot at and kidnapped.

Official Website: http://frontlineclub.com