It was important for me to this work because it enabled me to be more aware of the intricacy and the existence of a parallel world, that of spirits.

Namsa Leuba is an African-European photographer born in Switzerland. Her work explores the construction and deconstruction of  the body, ideas of ceremony and ritual and the relationship between the sacred and the profane. Here she tells us about her “Ya Kala Ben” series, Guinean cosmology and the photographic eye.

What led you to begin the “ Yakala Ben” photo series? Was there a particular catalyzing event that brought you towards the project, or was it something that you had thought about doing for awhile?

This trip was an opportunity to reconnect with some of my roots. I have always wanted to explore and share this other culture that is part of me. And I knew that the best way to do so was to visit the village founded by my great grandfather. This pilgrimage to the land of some of my ancestors inevitably and immediately raised the sensitive question of “origin” or “origins”. Mine, that of my parents, of others (my subjects) and of my approach.

How long did it take you to complete the series? 

My work has been realized between January and March 2011 in Guinea Conakry. It took me four months to prepare my trip with the help of my mother and my family on the ground. The preparation was extensive as I couldn’t just turn up and say “hi, I’m just taking pictures

I know when I go to Mexico ( where my family is from) I’m often struck by the cultural myths, sacred grounds and religious icons there, and that those things often reveal subtle differences about the culture I grew up in (the US), versus the culture that is actually more my heritage(Mexico). Was there anything that you felt you learned about Guinean culture that surprised you, or that you did not expect? 

The pace at which people in Guinea got things done surprised me. Everything took longer. I found myself wasting a day waiting for people to turn up. On the second day I took off my watch to be able to relate. I therefore learned how to work at the guinean pace. The systematic lateness of models posed some technical problems; for instance, the changing of light during the day as at certain times it becomes harder.

- To be able to enter a sacred forest, normally reserved for the few initiated, I received, after long negotiations, an “express” introduction which after all took a day to complete.

You said at times you had to deal with “sometimes violent reactions from Guineans who viewed my procedures/practices as a form of sacrilege.” Was there any point when you thought about giving up your project, and if not, what kept you going? 

I never thought about giving up my project which was very dear to me. It was also an important part of my degree.

I think the relationship between the sacred and the profane is a very interesting one. What was your relationship to the Guinean cosmology before the trip, and how did it evolve through your making of these images?

All I knew before the trip was that my mother is muslim and that my father is a protestant, although I’ve not been baptized. The religious aspect of my mother’s country became very prominent. I discovered an animist side to the Guinean culture which is based on people’s respect for it. I had been exposed to supernatural part of Guinea as since I was a child, I visited ‘marabouts’ (some type of witches) and this time around took part in many ceremonies and rituals. And for me it was important to do this work, because now i feel more aware of this situation, the existence of a parallel world, and the world of spirit. It was important for me to this work because it enabled me to be more aware of the intricacy and the existence of a parallel world, that of spirits.

I think it’s interesting that part of the reason these images are sacrilegious is because you’ve desecrated ritual tools by showing them in human form, in body. How do you tend to approach the body in your work?

In what is retroactive look at my pictures, it reminds us of the statuettes and look at what the statuettes (object) we think a human figure. When we look at my pictures in retroactive, it makes us think of statuettes and we look at the statuettes (artifact) we think of a human figure. Behind my pictures we see the statuettes even though they are humanized. We animate the statuettes (artifact), by thinking of human figure. Under my pictures there are statuettes, in the statuettes exist the humans/ the human image. The retroactive image is not the immediate picture(image), but what is behind it, behind the picture and my experience.

Artists like Francis Alys have played with the idea that in the secular west, artworks take the place of “sacred” or ritual objects. Does this factor into your mode of creating or thinking about these photographs? 

I am particularly interested in fetishes. My approach is to separate those sacred statuettes from their religious context in order to immortalized them in a Western framework.“They are ritualistic tools that I have animated by giving them an unusual meaning in the Guinean context”.

What, if anything, do you hope to accomplish from “recontextualizing these sacred objects through the lens”?

By being present in those places, my view on those symbols as well as their use, my bachelor work in photography could be considered as my own ritual. I came to decontextualize them and give them another meaning by questioning their structure of origin and therefore their meaning.

What was the most challenging thing, physically, psychologically, or mentally in creating these images and bringing this project into fruition?

It was to stay focused on my goal, to not get carried away during the ceremonies and rituals. To stay alert and to not be completely in trance.

What are some standout attitudes that differ between western aesthetic culture and Guinean aesthetic culture?

Avoiding the generalization, Guinean esthetic is a lot more distinguished by sculpted wood craft, leather, etc. by the colonial western esthetic, the rounded furniture with coil and embellishments.It is basically Chinese industrials and Lebanese merchants who dictate esthetic preferences. Guineans have less the need and the means to always change their accessories like the westerns.

Andrea Diaz for Photosynth

(Source: namsaleuba.com)