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Nubian Dreams: Images of the Sudan
Main Gallery
June 20 - August 15, 2008 |
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Who
were the ancient people—living, farming, worshiping and
journeying—along the Nile River as it carried life to the desert?
The
Blue Nile, beginning in the highlands of Ethiopia (land of Lucy: the most
ancient being of us all), joins the White Nile at modern-day Khartoum in Sudan
and flows on through Egypt to the sea. Its seasonal
flooding once brought belief, hope and terror to the people along its banks.
Thousands-of-years-old temples and pyramids in Kemet (modern-day Egypt), Nubian pyramids and tombs in Sudan, and Axumite tombs and obelisks in Ethiopia all interconnect.
But how? And in what order?
I use my camera to document similarities and
differences that make a statement about these ancient Nile people—the Axumites, Nubians and Kemetians—and
their phenomenal approach to society and the dramatic, collective conversation
they conducted with their Creator. I try to give voice to the divine dialogue
they left behind in stone.
To me, the ancient art and architecture portrays
a family of cousins with shared beliefs and enmities living, loving and warring
along the long,
life-sustaining corridor
of the Nile in northern Africa.
— Chester Higgins, 2008
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Chester Higgins is one of the premiere photographers of his generation. Because he believes art humanizes us, the subjects of his photographs are of utmost importance to him. His images resonate with a spiritual echo, which maintains the image and frees it from the constraints of time. Much of Higgins’ imagery is inspired by his quest to redefine the visual document as it relates to people of African descent. Viewers gain a rare insight into cultural behavior—a window to another place and time—through his portraits and studies of living rituals and ancient civilizations.
An Alabama native, he has been a staff photographer for The New York Times since 1975. His photographs have appeared in numerous publications including ArtNews, New York Times Sunday Magazine, Life, Newsweek, Fortune, Ebony, Essence, The New Yorker and Archaeology. His work is the topic of two PBS films, "An American Photographer: Chester Higgins Jr.," and “Brotherman”. His one-man exhibitions have appeared at the International Center of Photography, The Smithsonian Institution, The Museum of African Art, The Museum of Photographic Arts, The Schomburg Center, among others. He is the recipient of grants from The Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, the International Center of Photography, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Andy Warhol Foundation (ICP).
He is the author of the photo collections Black Woman, Drums of Life; Some Time Ago and Feeling the Spirit: Searching the World for the People of Africa — a comprehensive look at the African Diaspora and Elder Grace: The Nobility of Aging. His latest book, a memoir entitled Echo of the Sprit: A Photographer’s Journey was published in 2005 by Doubleday. |
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Updated:
June 20, 2008
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