Questo è uno dei fotogiornalisti contemporanei che preferisco. Attraverso i suoi occhi Pep Bonet esprime il fotogiornalismo in modo più complesso e interpretato, racconta e interpreta splendidamente. Bonet dice: “Io cerco di cancellare i confini tra giornalismo e lavoro artistico. Non credo nell’oggettività dell’informazione. Mi piace raccontare le mie sensazioni su quello che vedo. Per far questo, talvolta uso fotografie mosse o sfocate, per trascinare lo spettatore dentro l’atmosfera del luogo e fargli sentire la sofferenza o la confusione della realtà che riporto.” ”Quando vendo una storia che sarà pubblicata è importante per me che la gente scopra vicende di cui non avrebbe sospettato l’esistenza senza di me.”

San Pedro Sula, Honduras. May 2008. Deylin and Manuel “la nelo” at their hotel room smoking crack. Deylin Monserrat is a transsexual commercial sex worker. She is HIV positive and lives in a small and destroyed hotel where she works and lives together with Manuel. Manuel Martinez “la negra” is a transsexual commercial sex worker and he is HIV positive. They booth are addicted to crack, marihuana and alcohol.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. April 2012. Julia is a transsexual, she works as a commercial sex worker in the streets of Lapa, in Rio. She rents a room in a house where about 25 other transsexuals live and work as commercial sex workers. The owner of the house is Luana Muniz, Luana is an activist, she cares for the transsexuals and is involved in the fight for their rights. The combined effects of discrimination, humiliation, lack of education, and isolation from mainstream society place enormous emotional strain on Brazil’s transgender people, especially those who earn their living as sex workers. Unlike female sex workers, who have a range of professional options available to them, transgender sex workers often feel they have no options. Many see prostitution as the price they pay for choosing to transform.

SIERRA LEONE Freetown An inmate in the rain at the City of Rest (CORE) drug rehabilitation centre. The Deliverance Ministry runs the centre, which offers counselling and support for recovering drug addicts, alcoholics and traumatised or delinquent youths. The ministry tries to address problems of addiction, delinquency and even cases of demonic possession with rest, food and prayer.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. April 2012. Shaw is a nine-teen year old transsexual, she works as a commercial sex worker in the streets of Lapa, in Rio. She is originally from Fortaleza. She rents a room in a house where about 25 other transsexuals live and work as commercial sex workers. The owner of the house is Luana Muniz, Luana is an activist, she cares for the transsexuals and is involved in the fight for their rights. The combined effects of discrimination, humiliation, lack of education, and isolation from mainstream society place enormous emotional strain on Brazil’s transgender people, especially those who earn their living as sex workers. Unlike female sex workers, who have a range of professional options available to them, transgender sex workers often feel they have no options. Many see prostitution as the price they pay for choosing to transform.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. April 2012. “Turma Ok” Club, located in Lapa. Lorna Washington getting ready for a performance. Lorna, precursor of drag queens in Rio de Janeiro, always satirized the Brazilian divas such as Maria Bethania and Elza Soares. Lorna, who is one of the founders of the band Carmen Miranda, witnessed the inauguration of the first spaces used exclusively for the Rio GLS like “Turma ok” One of his most applauded show was at the club Parrots in the mid-80s, with the direction of Joseph Walter Girão de Melo. But his success was not limited to Brazil. In 1996, Lorna Washington performed also in the USA. Long before there was any organized gay movement in Brazil, “Turma Ok” was founded in the early 60’s in Rio. With almost 50 years of existence, is the oldest gay group in Brazil, and remains active producing cultural events and promoting camaraderie among the participants.

Bio

Nato in Spagna (1974), Pep Bonet ha studiato fotografia ad Amsterdam nel 1997. Organizza il suo lavoro su progetti a lungo termine, in particolare sul continente Africano, dai quali ha tratto diversi libri fotografici e oltre 35 mostre presentate in tutto il mondo. Il suo lavoro più celebre “Faith in Chaos”, un saggio fotografico sugli strascichi della guerra in Sierra Leone, ha ricevuto nel 2005 il premio W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography. Nel 2004 l’American Photo Magazine Editor’s Choice ha eletto Bonet uno degli Artisti Emergenti dell’Anno e nel 2009 vince il World Press Photo per i suoi “portrait stories”

Link: Pep Bonet – Website Pep Bonet – Twitter Pep Bonet – Facebook fan page