Whereas many see their work as a purely professional undertaking, KEVIN OGUOKO had a chance to visit the ongoing photojournalists’ exhibition, to sample the art.
A picture is worth a thousand words, so the saying goes. Last Saturday, members of the Photojournalist Association of Kenya-PAK, a body comprised of photojournalists working within Kenya came together in conjunction with GoDown Arts Centre and Canon to launch the first annual photojournalism exhibition at a cocktail party.
The exhibition, which runs until the end of this month, seeks to bring the different angle to photojournalism; the more artistic face. Each picture has a unique feature, each reflecting a story as ‘narrated’ by the photographers behind them, each driven by their passion and reason they were drawn in to the beautiful world of photography.
The exhibition takes place at the artistic GoDown Arts Centre buildings along Dunga Road under the banner ‘The Year In Pictures 2012’.
The offering sets to inspire aspiring photojournalists still in college and universities studying photography-related courses.
“We have a lot of photography talented photographers with a good eye within Kenya. Finally there is a platform to showcase that.” Says Jacob Otieno, Standard Newspaper Deputy photo editor and Secretary General of PAK.
Walls upon walls
Inside the building, the white walls are covered with pictures of various colours covering it all through. A total of 6 walls, the walls are divided into a number of sections with each section contributed by works of specific photojournalists.
The first wall displays some compelling pieces by Noor Khamis, a founding member of PAK and journalist with Reuters. A unique picture shows the CEO of Kenya Airways, Titus Naikuni taking a photo from a plane engine with his feet hanging in the air. The picture makes for a unique business feature.
Another picture is that of a primary school girl who has scrambled through a heap of wet brown rubbish to direct her mouth to sprinkles of water from a hole on an underground pipe system. The desperation to get access to clean water and the success battles with the reality of unsanitary conditions.
The second wall’s two sections is graced by Nation Media Group’s Laban Walloga and Maarufu Mohammed and a photo of a nomadic couple stands out. The husband all drenched, a dusty dark skin loosely hanging from his starved bony structure. His eyes, forlorn. His wife is by his side, covering her face with a cloth and beside them, a quarter-full bowl of peanuts on the opposite side; perhaps their last meal.
A picture of the Mombasa ferry stands out; during a rainy season, every passenger carrying a different umbrella, to make a montage of colours. The ferry makes them one.
The next section of the wall shows works by Fredrick Omondi — famous for the late Michuki’s torn socks photo — as well as Gilbert Otieno and Jack Owuor.
A photo shows legs walking on the streets of Nairobi. Another, some Maasai, wearing their traditional sandals with bands strapped on their ankles. On their side away from their focus were different types of people walking around in mostly business official shoes. The photos seem to tell the same everyday story in different settings. A photo, for example, shows the sunset in different parts of the city. One has the sun setting in the wild, with one kid playing football, the other on a section of Thika road which from afar seems like a section of a road in a European country until one spots the Safaricom billboard advertisement.
Another was on a quiet part of the city in one of those public parks. Though in different locations, the photo gives the feeling of peaceful co-existence.
Kibaki’s executive aura
Jacob Otieno’s photos also stand out. The Standard Group’s Deputy Photo Editor has had a passion for photography ever since he was 13 and it shows in the photos on display. One shows a photo of President Barack Obama wrapping his hand around the late Wangari Maathai’s shoulder on his visit to Kenya back when he was still a Senator.
With his boyish looks sucked under a two-button brown suit. The picture stirs profound emotion, that of a young man with humility but huge potential.
A photo of President Kibaki waiting on a raised executive platform for an officer in red uniform to hurriedly roll out a red carpet for him to cross the street exudes that executive aura.
