In the “Outland” series (1995 – 2000), Roger Ballen focused on white, marginalized populations around Johannesburg in South Africa. Gradually resisting the codes of classic documentary photography used in his previous series, he tackled an original approach in the construction of these images. This new orientation marked a major transformation in Ballen’s creative process, in which reality and fiction combine.
In “Outland” – which means “at the margins of society” or “at the limitations of the psyche” – Ballen integrated the theatricality of certain situations in the everyday life of the people that he photographed. The latter began to be actively involved in the production of the images by fictionalizing their own portrayal. However that doesn’t make them actors or simple models. Ballen created a hybrid image in which portrait and picture were combined. The relationship that these people photographed have with the shot proves to be multiple and complex, just like the relationships which govern contemporary society.
In “Outland”, a feeling of alienation is demonstrated and this relationship between order and chaos sheds light on Ballen’s questioning about the workings of the world.
Christian Caujolle
Read the full article on the French version of Le Journal.
Roger Ballen: Outland
Festival Image Singulières
8 – 26 May, 2013
Maison De L’image Documentaire
Sète
France
