As Photo Vogue Festival celebrates its tenth anniversary, the urban creative project BASE Milano will be hosting Reframing History, the sixth edition of the magazine’s annual photography exhibition, opening on November 18. Having received submissions from over 2,500 photographers, the selection has been whittled down by an international jury, with the works of thirty-five artists making the cut. There will be a further special chapter focusing specifically on Black creatives’ interpretation of the theme as well as a video section. The ethos of this edition is rooted in challenging hegemonic historical narratives in order to create what Vogue Italia themselves have labelled as “a more just, ethical, and inclusive visual world.”
The premise for the initial photocall took inspiration from an old African proverb that says, “Until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.” This edition of the festival seeks to give a platform to the lions. One of the lions in question is Leonard Suryajaya. As a queer Buddhist immigrant now settled in Chicago, Leonard has experienced the juxtaposition of many different cultures, as well as the tensions between them. He explores these themes through meticulously staged photographs made up of vivid and often clashing patterns, occasionally incorporating his family into the works as further subjects. This culture clash that can be seen in his works perfectly aligns with the exhibition’s aim of defying conventional narratives.
Another artist whose work will be on display is Dimakatso Mathopa. Her work resists aesthetic convention not only thematically, but also in a physical sense. As a South African, Mathopa questions and subverts the colonial gaze and fights against the hegemony of its depictions of Black women. As well as this, Mathopa employs the Cyanotype process to develop her photos, which had previously been approaching obsolescence. This method produces stunning monochrome blue photographs and gives the images a truly ethereal quality.
A collection from Swiss-Guinean photographer Namsa Leuba will also be on display. In an interview with METAL from when she released a previous photoset, Leuba characterised her work as “documentary fiction impregnated by an aesthetic of fashion and performance;” these slightly surreal shots are just as visually loud as that description suggests.
The aforementioned artists offer just a glimpse of a tantalising array of forty-seven photographers, whose works sadly cannot all be fitted within the framework of this article. However, from November 18, they will be available in all their glory as one grand show. PhotoVogue Festival has now undeniably cemented itself as a landmark fixture in the calendar of world photography. So, whether one sees it in person or online, this is a show not to be missed.
Another artist whose work will be on display is Dimakatso Mathopa. Her work resists aesthetic convention not only thematically, but also in a physical sense. As a South African, Mathopa questions and subverts the colonial gaze and fights against the hegemony of its depictions of Black women. As well as this, Mathopa employs the Cyanotype process to develop her photos, which had previously been approaching obsolescence. This method produces stunning monochrome blue photographs and gives the images a truly ethereal quality.
A collection from Swiss-Guinean photographer Namsa Leuba will also be on display. In an interview with METAL from when she released a previous photoset, Leuba characterised her work as “documentary fiction impregnated by an aesthetic of fashion and performance;” these slightly surreal shots are just as visually loud as that description suggests.
The aforementioned artists offer just a glimpse of a tantalising array of forty-seven photographers, whose works sadly cannot all be fitted within the framework of this article. However, from November 18, they will be available in all their glory as one grand show. PhotoVogue Festival has now undeniably cemented itself as a landmark fixture in the calendar of world photography. So, whether one sees it in person or online, this is a show not to be missed.
Individual Beings Relocated III, 2017 from the series Individual Beings Relocated © Dimakatso Mathopa
© Dustin Thierry
Image from the series Quarantine Blues © Leonard Suryajaya, courtesy of the artist
Hope from the series العائلة Family © Ismail Zaidy
© Kennedi Carter
© Kiki Xue
Black Magic from the series Ghost Island © Lisandro Suriel
Untitled from the series Warawar Wawa (Son of the Stars) © River Claure
© Romina Ressia
Akinola Davies Jr / Nuuksio Films "Black To Life, 2019"
Untitled, 2020 © Campbell Addy
Untitled IV, from the series ‘In e wá wo mi’ © Lakin Ogunbanwo
Black JC, 2017’ from the series ‘Weke’ © Namsa Leuba
Royal Hier-Itage. A Beautifulrhapsody’, Muse Kuoth Wiel © Trevor Stuurman