So my brother is an irritatingly exposed man, who speaks about the intricacies of Rundi culture as easily as discusses post modernist swedish furniture. A list of some of the things he has dabbled in and achieved competence(in no particular order), guitarist, human rights advocate (complete with run in battles and brawls), traditional drummer, antique restorer/dealer, journalist and more recently photographer.
While he has been good at all of them, he has excelled at photography. Bear with my skewed and probably incomplete picture(pun intended) as this is only the perspective of a sycophantic younger brother.
He has excelled because photography has become a natural extension of himself, as what he is, what he stands for and what he does. As far as I can remember, he has longed, managed to and found purpose in being at the center of changing times as an active agent. And the pictures he takes reflect what he believes in. That there is beauty out there, that our history and times need a more permanent anchoring in our memories so we may look back and reflect, and that Burundians are able to look at their present world in stark, sometimes accusatory black and white to form an idea of a future which is not written as per the custom, written for them. More importantly that someone needs to tell the story.
So there it is.
Ugly and Pretty, Past and Present, Peaceful and Warring, Black and White, This is Burundi trapped in a lens by Teddy Robert Mazina. My brother.
Visit. And have an Opinion.http://www.flickr.com/photos/mdmexpo/
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