Judges
Courtesy of
Olivier Khouadiani
Faces of Humanity Series
Olivier Khouadiani
Highly Commended
Olivier Khouadiani is an emerging photographer based in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. At the crossroads of journalism, fine art and street photography, his work explores the topics of globalization, identity, and how African culture and traditions fit within this contemporary world.
Constantly striving for improvement, the former finance auditor quit his corporate job in 2017 to focus on his true calling.
The PopoBat
Côte d'Ivoire (Bonoua)
2022
Culture-based, this work opens up the socio-cultural environment in the south-eastern region of the divorced coast to the world. Here we are talking about the popo carnival.
The cultural event celebrated yearly in Bonoua (50 km east of Abidjan), the POPO CARNIVAL, originates in the changes that the young abouré de Bonoua brought yams to the annual feast. Thus, in 1946, they innovated by organizing the "POPO” (meaning “mask” in French).
Much later, when they became adults, they named this time the feast of the name of POPO CARNIVAL, introducing the modern aspect
(carnival) in the form of a parade of floats. Since 1972, the organization of this festival has been in the customs of the abouré who, every year,
during the Easter period (April) rejoice in the same popular joy.