Our readers picks #338, Sven Forsans and Toufic Beyhum, are both inspired by their surroundings. One captures the charm of his escapades, and the other documents the consequences of globalisation on his country of adoption.
Sven Forsans
Sven Forsans, a 37-year-old French-Norwegian photographer, discovered the art of photography after the birth of his first child: “I bought a compact camera during a trip to Norway, which I unfortunately lost. When I travelled back home, I opted for a DSLR camera, at the duty-free shop, wishing to take nice pictures of my son, and one thing led to another and I got hooked”, he recalls. Today, the artist “thinks about photography all the time”, and immortalises his escapades around the world, as well as his daily life. With his camera always in hand, he “freezes moments, and leaves a trace for future generations”. Favoring a spontaneous approach, and a raw rendering – he hardly retouches his images – Sven Forsans captures street scenes, as well as natural landscapes, seeking to intercept, through his lens, the charm and transience of a moment. “My favourite aesthetics? Naturalness and authenticity” he adds.
© Sven Forsans
Toufic Beyhum
“Since I’ve been in Namibia, I have noticed how the younger generation have become so westernised. They eat junk food, wear Western style clothes… and if you can’t afford the real thing we have a China Town here where you can buy all that stuff but fake. It’s quite sad actually, because China Town here is just a warehouse filled with Chinese made clothes, electronic items, cheap plastic toys – no restaurants or anything cultural like in London or New York”,
says Toufic Beyhum, a Lebanese photographer. Inspired by this globalisation of culture, Beyhum’s Quiet Colonialism features black models wearing ‘made in China’ combs and headdresses. “I designed them myself and printed them in 3D”, he adds. A colourful series, mixing the emblematic customs of Africa with the growing influence of western countries. Photographed from behind, the women, wearing these accessories with pride, thwart the codes and invite the viewer to question themselves: are minority rites and customs destined to disappear? How to preserve their richness? How to keep them alive in this ultra-connected world? “Technology, in small doses, can be our friend. But it can also turn against us and destroy our socialness, our culture”, warns the photographer.
© Toufic Beyhum
Cover picture: © Toufic Beyhum
