Within a Sky Full of Earth

Thirty years of Africa images, selected by Salgado himself

Sebastião Salgado is one the most respected photojournalists working today, his reputation forged by decades of dedication and powerful black and white images of dispossessed and distressed people taken in places where most wouldn’t dare to go. Although he has photographed throughout South America and around the globe, his work most heavily concentrates on Africa, where he has shot more than 40 reportage works over a period of 30 years. From the Dinka tribes in Sudan and the Himba in Namibia to gorillas and volcanoes in the lakes region to displaced peoples throughout the continent, Salgado shows us all facets of African life today. Whether he’s documenting refugees or vast landscapes, Salgado knows exactly how to grab the essence of a moment so that when one sees his images one is involuntarily drawn into them. His images artfully teach us the disastrous effects of war, poverty, disease, and hostile climatic conditions.

This book brings together Salgado’s photos of Africa in three parts. The first concentrates on the southern part of the continent (Mozambique, Malawi, Angola, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia), the second on the Great Lakes region (Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya), and the third on the Sub-Saharan region (Burkina Faso, Mali, Sudan, Somalia, Chad, Mauritania, Senegal, Ethiopia). Texts are provided by renowned Mozambique novelist Mia Couto, who describes how today’s Africa reflects the effects of colonization as well as the consequences of economic, social, and environmental crises.

This stunning book is not only a sweeping document of Africa but an homage to the continent’s history, people, and natural phenomena.

The photographer: Sebastião Salgado was born in Aimorés, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. A former economist, Salgado began his career in Paris as a professional photographer in 1973 and subsequently worked with the photo agencies Sygma, Gamma, and Magnum Photos. In 1994, Lélia Wanick Salgado and Sebastião Salgado created Amazonas images, an agency that handles exclusively his work. Salgado travels throughout the world for his photographic projects which have been featured in numerous international periodicals as well as books, including Other Americas (1986), Sahel: l’homme en détresse (1986), Workers (1993), Terra (1997), Migrations (2000), and The Children (2000). Exhibitions of these bodies of work tour internationally. Salgado has been awarded numerous major photographic prizes in recognition of his accomplishments and is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Together Lélia and Sebastião have been working since 1991 on the restoration of a small part of the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest, in the Rio Doce Valley, where they created Instituto Terra, a natural reserve and environmental educational center. Salgado’s current photographic project is Genesis, a series of black-and-white photographs of landscapes, wildlife, and human communities around the globe that represents a search for nature in its original state.

The author: Mia Couto has published 20 books including novels, short-stories and poetry. Translated in more than 20 countries Mia Couto is the best known and awarded author from Mozambique. His first novel, Sleepwalking Land, was classified by an International jury, as one of 12 best African books published in the 20th century. Mia Couto has received national and international awards and has been short listed for the Caine International Prize (2001), the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize (2005) and the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award (2006). Mia Couto lives in Maputo (Mozambique) and works as an ecologist.

Africa by Sebastião Salgado
Lélia Salgado (ED) + Mia Couto
TASCHEN • Hardcover • 336 pages • OCT 2007 • 650 MOP$
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