Monday 29 August 2011

Darkness Visible Afghanistan



I occasionally post on projects that I believe ought to be supported by the public at large, and one such project is Darkness Visible Afghanistan by photojournalist Seamus Murphy, whose aim is to raise $10,000 to create a documentary movie based on his many years traveling and photographing in Afghanistan.

"My mission is to promote an understanding of this mysterious, complex and fascinating culture."

Seamus Murphy has been photographing Afghanistan since 1994. He published a book, also titled A Darkness Visible: Afghanistan, as a chronicle of the country and its people over those tumultuous years. For two decades, Seamus has also worked extensively in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Latin America and most recently, America. He has won 7 World Press Photo Awards and a World Understanding Award (POYi) for his work from Afghanistan.

Of the book Darkness Visible, Afghanistan, Philip Jones Griffiths wrote that "Seamus Murphy was a poet with a camera who captured the essence of life in one of the oldest countries in the world. It is a humanistic view of a misunderstood country and a rare glimpse into the nation's soul."

Many of the documentaries on Afghanistan that I've read about are focused on war, on the Taliban and its excesses...so I'm happy to dedicate a post to Mr Murphy's project...a documentary that hopes to promote its culture, its history and its people.

REI | De Las Flores

REI by Tewfic El-Sawy on on Exposure