Under Construction S O . L I L . O . Q U Y
Que digan que estoy dormido (Let them say i’m sleeping)
Archival photographic prints - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Mexico - 23°38’4.2” N, 102°33’10” W
The stitched hand of a 14 year old Honduran boy attacked by a gang with machetes whilst making his way on 'La Bestia' to the USA.
Returning home is not an option as his father is the head of the same gang that maimed him.
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H O M E N E W S C V / B I O G A L L E R I E S T E X T S C O N T A C T
Alec Von Bargen, Soliloquy
Published by Pacific, 2018
Hardcover
480 pages, 8 ¼ × 10 ¾ inches
Edition of 500
Aesthetica Art Prize - York
Royal Photographic Society - 161st International Photography Exhibition - Bristol
IFAP – International Fine Art Photography Awards - Paris
IPA – International Photography Awards - Los Angeles
International Color Awards - UK
Photography Gala Awards - 11th Pollux Award - UK
The Independent Photographer -
ND Awards - New York
For eighteen months, Von Bargen travelled to twenty-three Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF, Doctors Without Borders) missions in ten countries, documenting life amidst unfolding global conflicts. Through interviews, photography, recordings, and video, Von Bargen has illuminated the tapestry of human struggle and perseverance across the globe. This monumental effort was undertaken not only by the artist, but a group of protagonists including doctors, medical staff, volunteers, and everyday people—the cacophony of voices form So.lil.o.quy.
Within the 480-page publication, the countries of Chad, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Myanmar, Mexico, Kenya, Ukraine, Greece, Honduras, and South Sudan are brought to life through photography, correspondence, and a soliloquy written by MSF staff on the ground in each location. Texts bookend the ten countries, including a foreword by Avril Benoit, an interview with Elizabeth Karp-Evans, and an essay by Lynne Roberts-Goodwin. The publication concludes with a series of plates featuring multi-media works that Von Bargen will be exhibiting in 2019.
This award-winning series was supported by Médecins San Frontières, The Swatch Art Peace Hotel, Amy Novogratz & Mike Velings, Il Triangolo Galleria D'Arte, Studio Magenis & Il Coldana.
"So.lil.o.quy destabilizes traditional notions of knowledge and representation within visual cultures and methodologies as found in both fields of art and anthropology, attesting to and engaging within a new vision of representational practice, offering a more authentic response to the world. The artist reflects within this work a deep level of humanity more than perhaps politically correct ways of being self-reflexive about the human subject and objects. Von Bargen's representational practice expands the notion of what it is to be human, to ethically elicit empathy, and to create a discourse of healing and to not reduce it."
– Lynne Roberts-Goodwin
Before the rains #1 – #8
Archival photographic prints - Polyptych – 10 images - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Chad - 15o27’15” N, 18o43’55.95” E
The images were taken around the northwest of lake chad during the rainy season.
Internally displaced peoples are threatened with both the oncoming downpours and the news of Boko Haram infiltration in the area.
Under the blue skies of Agok #1 – #8
Archival photographic prints - 12 images - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
South Ssudan - 7°51’45.66” N, 29°41’41.72” E
Taken in South Sudan, the newest country on earth, Internally displaced peoples and nomads in Agok deal with health care exclusion, endemic/epidemic, famine and armed conflict. At nights, victims and patients sleeping in makeshift clinics dream under the synthetic blue skies of mosquito netting.
IN COLLABORATION WITH:
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
WITH THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF:
AWARDS
Scar Tissue
Archival photographic prints - Polyptych – 10 images - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Chad - 15o27’15”Nn, 18o43’55.95” E
Scar tissue documents the landscape, the shores of the mighty lake Chad, which is marked by the migrating patterns of the internally displaced.
The sequence of the 10 images mark the trace we leave as human beings.
Tales from the Bullseye - #1 - #5
Archival photographic prints - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Honduras - 18o25’40.93” N, 69o58’59.96” W
Social violence in Honduras has turned the entire population into vulnerable victims.
From 'El Picacho', one of the highest viewpoints in Tegucigalpa, daily routine puts even the most unsuspecting in the center of the bullseye.
The remnants of a story not yet told
Archival photographic prints - Triptych – Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Chad - 15o27’15” N, 18o43’55.95” E
Scarring is a common practice for aesthetic, religious and social reasons. Each marking tells a profound tale, most of the time deeper than the scar itself.
The survival topographic of streets paved with gold #1 – #6
Archival photographic prints edition of 3 + 2 AP
South Sudan - 7°51’45.66” n, 29°41’41.72” e
SCARRING IS A COMMON PRACTICE IN THE REGION FOR AESTHETIC, RELIGIOUS AND SOCIAL REASONS. EACH MARK TELLS A TALE.
Home
Archival photographic prints - Polyptych – 112 images - Edition of 1 + 2 AP
Elliniko refugee camp, Greece - 37o53’20.18” N, 23o44’36.64” E
Wanting to faithfully recreate the visual perception of the refugees in the Elliniko refugee camp, I made a grid,
marking a point every 10 metres north and every 30 metres west towards the ocean. Facing the Saronic Gulf, I took an image from each point
in order to experience firsthand the barriers which separate their current existence from the shores upon which they landed seeking refuge.
The remnants of a story not yet told
Archival photographic prints - Triptych – Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Chad - 15o27’15” N, 18o43’55.95” E
Scarring is a common practice for aesthetic, religious and social reasons. Each marking tells a profound tale, most of the time deeper than the scar itself.
All dressed-up with nowhere to go
Archival photographic prints - Series of 8 – Edition of 3 + 2 AP
South Sudan - 7°51’45.66” N, 29°41’41.72” E
The makeshift clinics throughout the area can help, heal and protect, but upon release, most have nowhere to go back to
The pitfll ff paaninng hhead
Archival photographic print - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Ukraine - 48° 22’58.88’’ N, 31° 10’58.33’’ E
The girl with the golden necklace
Archival photographic print - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
South Sudan - 7°51’45.66” N, 29°41’41.72” E
All dressed-up with nowhere to go
Archival photographic prints - Series of 8 – Edition of 3 + 2 AP
South Sudan - 7°51’45.66” N, 29°41’41.72” E
The makeshift clinics throughout the area can help, heal and protect, but upon release, most have nowhere to go back to
The pitfll ff paaninng hhead
Archival photographic print - Edition of 3 + 2 AP
Ukraine - 48° 22’58.88’’ N, 31° 10’58.33’’ E
Photography by Alice Hendy and Derryn Vranch
