Boris Allin, aka Boby, 27, spends his time alternating between reports for Libération, portraits and concert photography. A diversity which does not refrain him from creating committed photographs.
You may know his pictures published in the political column of Libération, or his portraits in the cultural pages of the journal. Boris Allin, aka Boby, spends his time alternating between creations for music bands he has been following for a long time, and press commissions. It is a picture commissioned by Libération that Fisheye chose as its latest cover.
Sent to take ‘atmospheric photos’ of Clichy-sous-Bois, to honour the 10th anniversary of Zyed and Bouna’s deaths – a tragedy that occurred during the neighbourhood riots of 2005 -, Boby found himself stuck, looking for the right image without any particular angle in mind. He sat at cafés, was roughly controlled by the BAC (the anti-crime brigade, ed.), and finally met a group of kids with whom he sympathised. They offered him a “visit of the ‘hood”, passing by an abandoned, 15 story high tower which dominated the place. This is where he captured the silhouettes of the boys, portraits he put together with outside images of the tower, in double-exposure.
“My commitment shows through my choice of working with Libération, even though I don’t agree with all their articles”, Boby adds, smiling behind his full beard. He tells us about this picture of an immigrant, taken to a bus by the Paris City Hall’s workers. The man is isolated, an ‘Emergency exist’ sign right above him. Or this other image, in which we see the statue from place de la République, in Paris, surrounded by the reflections of CRS men (Republic Security Companies, ed.). “I try to be as candid as possible. I like taking pictures that are both funny and thoughtful. Sometimes, we can’t help but being activists”. Boby’s universe can be further discovered in a video from the Perception series, available on our website.
© Boris Allin
Video © Nina Peyrachon
