May 1 – August 18, 2014
Courtyard Mural
The incongruity of Jim Naughten’s Herero Women Marching (2012), presented in the MOCCA courtyard, echoes the paradoxical meeting of two worlds. The procession of women wearing similar, resplendent dresses and horn-shaped headdresses that symbolize female fertility and the importance of cattle to their society, is placed in high visual relief against the parched environment. Two individual portraits of women in patterned petticoated dress can be viewed in MOCCA’s lobby, along with two portraits of men in unconventional military uniform. Photographing against the expansive landscape and blue sky of the Namib Desert that bore silent witness to this violent history, Naughten imbues his portraits with a sense of timelessness. His images convey in stunning detail the celebratory clothing through which a culture claims their identity with pride and defiance.
Curated by Bonnie Rubenstein
Organized by Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival
Presented in partnership with MOCCA
Image: Jim Naughten, Herero Women Marching, 2012
Opening Reception and Festival Launch
Friday May 2, 7 pm
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