CmiA x Fashion
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Interviews with well-known designers about designing outfits with CmiA.
Cotton made in Africa (CmiA) aims to improve the living conditions of thousands of smallholder farmers involved in the initiative, through cultivating sustainably produced cotton in Africa. This exceptional collaboration with fashion and commercial photographer Albert Watson provided an insight into the cotton farmers’ worlds and raised awareness of CmiA’s work.
The photos illustrate the initiative’s goal to improve the lives of smallholder farmers without resorting to visual stereotypes. Instead, the aim of the project has been to show a new image of African living environments, seen through the eyes of Albert Watson. In addition to witnessing the cotton harvest, which was underway during his trip, Watson has also visited traditional markets and met a regional king to get a broader impression of the diversity of life in Benin and its people.
The completed photographs were exhibited from 14 September 2012 to 13 January* 2013 in the House of Photography at the Deichtorhallen Hamburg. The VISIONS FEAT. COTTON MADE IN AFRICA exhibition was part of a show that also included some of the photographer’s previously-unshown vintage and Polaroid works.
The curator Ingo Taubhorn noted: “Albert Watson is well-known as a fashion and celebrity photographer, but he is so much more: He toils uncompromisingly on an image and can just as easily turn his investigative gaze on to social realities. That is why I am looking forward to seeing what stories the smallholder farmers will tell through his pictures.”
*the exhibition was extended from 6 January to 13 January due to public demand.
The Albert Watson: Visions feat. Cotton made in Africa exhibition was held from 14 September 2012 to 13 January 2013 in the House of Photography at the Deichtorhallen Hamburg. It was divided into two parts. At its heart was Albert Watson’s newly created photographs of Benin from December 2011. These depict smallholder farmers who work with Cotton made in Africa as well as their living environments in order to illustrate the social impacts of the initiative.
Alongside the photographic treasures from his trip round Benin, various rooms were dedicated to exhibiting a retrospective of Watson’s early work, mainly small-format vintage prints that he developed in the darkroom himself. Displayed in the context of the extraordinary architecture of the Haus der Photographie, these fashion and lifestyle images were presented in a new way alongside incisive, powerfully energetic landscape and portrait shots as well as still life photos from Morocco, Las Vegas and the world of the Benin cotton farmers.
The exhibition was curated by Ingo Taubhorn (from the House of Photography). The German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ) has been an important sponsor of the project, in addition to two of Cotton made in Africa’s retail partners: OTTO and Tom Tailor.
Day 1
Arrival at Cotonou airport. With his white beard and Panama hat, Albert Watson looks more like a charismatic adventurer, on his arrival, than an experienced celebrity photographer. His gaze is inquisitive, open, alert. “I can’t believe I’m finally here”, he says—words that strike a chord with me.
Day 2
The soil of the savannah shines red; here and there we can see mud huts: time appears to have been standing still in the countryside north of the capital. Our convoy consists of three off-roaders. Albert Watson, in the front vehicle, calls on us to stop. What then follows is a pattern repeated scores of times each day: Albert Watson climbs out, followed by his three assistants. Lights, a tripod, and the Hasselblad camera are all unpacked. The master photographer has discovered something fascinating. Sometimes it’s a roadside stand, sometimes a woven fence, most of the time, however, it is people. At a marketplace in Abomey, we come across a group of dancers and musicians. Watson rolls out his reflector and asks, with the help of our translator, if he might photograph them. The polite sincerity of the stranger in the hat is convincing and they are all willing. “Just act as if I’m not there”, he shouts. As soon as he is finished, he shows them his pictures on a laptop. Many are bashful, almost ashamed, not used to seeing such a flood of pictures. It is difficult for us to imagine how this feels. Watson puts them at ease with the few words of French he knows: “C’est parfait”—it’s perfect.
Day 3
“They remind me of Moroccan nomads”, says Watson while looking at a group of Peuhl people who have gathered in Natitingou. The Peuhl were originally nomads, but many are now working as settled cotton farmers. Watson is enthralled by their peculiar charisma. Their faces are tattooed, they are brightly adorned, and they seem serious—almost unapproachable. The centrepiece of the celebration taking place is a ceremony including the ritual flogging of young Peuhl men causing blood to flow, apparently as a kind of test of courage. Watson mingles with the crowd, shooting away as if in a trance. Now and then you can see his white hat between the heads of the young men. In his improvised street studio, he takes a portrait of a young cotton farming woman. Her name is Aissatou Mahamadou. The picture is emblematic of Watson’s talented creations. Whether with Hollywood stars or farming maids, he appears to effortlessly capture everything he wants in his photo: self-assuredness, intimacy, naturalness.
Day 4
Four farmers are working in the midday heat on one of the few remaining unharvested cotton fields. Can Watson take a photograph? They agree. A woman scuttles across the dusty field, lowers a big barrel of water she had balanced on her head, leaves it for the men, and then goes on her way. Watson tries to lift the heavy container and only just manages. In the evening he asks himself, and us, without finding any satisfactory answer: “Why didn’t I photograph that woman?” Only to conclude: “It was a wonderful, fleeting moment.”
Day 5
The yams are cooking on a hotplate in the middle of the yard; the cotton farmer, who has been expecting us, introduces us to his two wives, his seven children, his brother, his brother’s family, his parents, and finally to his oxen—the animals he wants to be photographed with. The farmer has been working with Cotton made in Africa for some years now. “That’s how I can afford the animals and the cart for the harvest”, he explains. All seven children go to school and he plans on them becoming doctors and engineers. “You can see the pride in his face, pride in what he has achieved with your help”, says Watson, pleased.
Day 6
On the road, we see a motorbike coming towards us; amazingly it carries six people. Stop! Albert Watson climbs out of the van and talks the people into having their photo taken. They ride past his camera endlessly until he is finally satisfied with the shot. “That was nearly surreal”, he says, waving to them as they finally disappear in a cloud of smoke.
I went to Benin and travelled from South to North, from North to South and from the desert area to the beaches. And all along the way I was taking the photographs that would end up in the exhibition. I was able to get a feel for the country. Benin was quite surprising to me because it did not quite conform to my image of what West Africa was. It was a real surprise because I didn’t know, for example, who the Peuhl people were. And they were curious about me! When I did the portraits, they were completely open with me and completely natural. And just as I looked at them as though they were strange and from another world, so they looked at me and thought that I was strange and foreign. I had a great time in Benin, I enjoyed everything. I felt I had done something I had never done before; I saw a place I’d never seen before; I met people I never knew existed before. And the people were wonderful! They were fabulous to photograph. Everybody was very open and supportive. Only during my time in Benin did I learn exactly what the initiative is doing, and I really appreciate what CmiA does to improve the livelihoods of African farmers, and I saw the benefits of their work. I think the work of the initiative definitely improves the people’s lot and their lives. They have a better life because of it! But of course, there is still a lot to do.
CmiA smallholder farmer in Benin
For me, meeting the photographer Albert Watson was a truly memorable experience. I was able to show him that many things had become easier for me and my family since I joined Cotton made in Africa. I’ve learned a lot about efficient methods for cultivating cotton that I have used to improve my harvest. I now have a higher income as well, which means I have been able to buy new mules and a car. My seven children also benefit from the initiative: I’m happy that, thanks to Cotton made in Africa, I’ve been able to send them to school so that they can become doctors or engineers. Mr. Watson was very interested in all of this. And, like me, he is now part of the Cotton made in Africa family, and with the photo project he is helping to inform more people about our work, our lives and our cotton.
Sourakath (Sanni) Kassim „Le vieuc Pere”
Guide / Übersetzer / Fahrer der Benin-Fotoprojekt-Crew
Zwei Wochen lang habe ich das Team um Albert Watson begleitet. Wir sind quer durch Benin gefahren – auf der Suche nach spannenden Motiven und Gesichtern der Kleinbauern, die bei Cotton made in Africa mitmachen. Ich bin stolz, dass ich die Fotoerstellung erleben und das Projekt vor Ort sowohl als Dolmetscher als auch als Ortskundiger unterstützen konnte. Meine Tante lebt ebenfalls in Benin, sie ist eine afrikanische Heilerin und wurde von Albert Watson porträtiert. Zu sehen, wie ein weltweit bekannter Fotograf unsere Kultur, Natur und unseren Alltag in kunstvollen Bildern einfängt, hat mich besonders begeistert.
Guide/translator/driver for the Benin photo project crew
I spent two weeks accompanying the team led by Albert Watson. We drove all over Benin, scouting for exciting themes and for the faces of smallholders who are participating in Cotton made in Africa. I’m proud that I was able to witness how the photos were produced and that I was able to support the project on location, both as an interpreter and with my local knowledge. My aunt also lives in Benin, she is a practitioner of African natural medicine, and Albert Watson made a portrait photo of her. I was thrilled to see how a world-famous photographer captured our culture, Benin’s nature and our everyday lives in artistic images.
Over his four decades as one of the world’s preeminent photographers, Watson has used his powerful, graphic style to create images for hundreds of magazines, such as Vogue, GQ and Rolling Stone, as well as for successful advertising campaigns for major corporations. All the while, Watson has spent much of his time working on personal projects, creating stunning images from his travels and interests, from Marrakech to Las Vegas. Much of this work, along with his well-known celebrity portraits and fashion photographs, has been featured in museums and gallery shows worldwide. The photo industry bible, Photo District News, named Albert as one of the 20 most influential photographers of all time. Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1942, Watson studied graphic design in Dundee, followed by film studies at the London Royal College of Art in the late 1960s. After moving to the U.S. in 1970, he soon got the chance to earn his living doing photography. He has directed more than 200 TV commercials, shot hundreds of covers for fashion magazines (100 covers for Vogue alone) as well as movie posters (such as for “Kill Bill” and “The Da Vinci Code”).