Viviana Vammalle
PHOTOGRAPHY & TEXT
I have traveled tirelessly (although the truth is that I have gotten very tired many times) in search of images that convey the essence of those cultures that are so distant and unknown to us that we call them exotic. I have tried to capture in images those worlds so different from ours, where daily chores, religious rituals, taboos and the rules of coexistence are so diverse and varied that we cannot help but question the validity of our absolute certainties.
I am moved by a socio-anthropological-ethnic-aesthetic interest. I try to keep my forays non-invasive.I try to respect the customs of the people I “visit” and the privacy of their daily lives.
I do not take photos that do not authorize me, nor do I pose the subjects of my photos. I seek to gain their trust and then I try to capture the unique identity of each person, each environment, each culture, with the conviction that it is an enriching experience for both parties. I discover them and let them discover me; I am not a mere hunter of images, I consider myself rather a promoter of encounters and approaches.
We only live in the present. We evoke the past, we imagine the future. Africa has the magic of allowing us to live the past, I think that is the most compelling thing, to participate in some way of the past, not as a mere spectator. In Africa I have lived the past.
I have traveled on almost non-existent roads, crossing immense semi-desert savannas, or shaking off stony paths in vehicles that are not always very reliable, in order to reach the nomads or the most remote villages. The trips have been arduous, the days sometimes long, very long, and the reward for the fatigued body has been a tent with a mat not as thick as the tired bones would have liked. But as soon as an authentic rapprochement begins to take place, the inconveniences and precariousness of our ‘accommodation’ disappear.
Psychologist by profession, writer by vocation and photographer by passion.
Viviana travels for years the African continent visiting distant lands and people that few have yet met while seeking to discover the authenticity of these cultures, so different from ours.
“It pains me to think that these cultures are doomed to disappear. They were contaminated by an incurable disease, lethal for some: “Westernization”. Unfortunately these cultures will disappear – even before certain animal or plant species in danger of extinction – which worry environmentalists so much”.
Ana María de La Bruyére
EDITOR
Ana Maria de la Bruyère has extensive editorial experience. She was notably the creator of Spanish Vogue.
When Ana Maria saw the wonderful photos taken by Viviana, she immediately understood the potential they had to show and publicize the richness and beauty of ancient African cultures, little known to many people.
“I was seduced by the magnificent photos of Viviana, which reveal ancestral African civilizations, and which continue to this day! It seemed interesting to me to get to know as many people as possible and to immortalize these cultures in this beautiful edition of Forever Africa.”
She has put all her experience, her creativity and her critical vision to make this book and all her passion and dynamism to make it known and recognized, to such an extent that the United Nations has appointed Viviana and Ana Maria as “International Goodwill Ambassadors”
