Customer Reviews

Irving Penn: Photographs Of Dahomey 1967

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this book for my mother, because our family spent a long time working in West Africa, including Benin, formerly Dahomey. So we have seen these places in the 1970's and 1980's, and at least gotten an idea of the more traditional ways of life and people there. This depiction of a Dahomey from 1967 has even more flavor to it than what it would have been in 1977 or in 1987 - many traditional ways have changed and much of what's in the book can't be found anymore. So here we have the great, documentary side of the book, with its voodoo priestesses, the original amazon warrior female guards of the kings of Dahomey, its aristocratic families... It's mostly b/w portraiture and here, mostly full body shots.

But personal and historic interest aside: this book is extremely well made and has a stunning quality to it. Irving Penn preferred platinum printing, with its great tonal separation, and both the exposures themselves, and the printing, are superb. The print quality of the book itself is outstanding too, in terms of craftmanship alone this is a gem. The few color landscapes mingled into the b/w group portraits are equally well done.

Finally, this book is great art. You open it, it really touches you. There is glow to it. Irving Penn transported his fashion photography style into Africa, using a portable studio and natural light. His subjects look uncannily real and intense. It's rare that I think I must buy a book, this one was one of those.