A Ship Called Dignity

LARGE - Edition of 12Unframed - 56" x 79"Framed - 71" x 94" STANDARD - Edition of 12Unframed - 37" x 52"Framed - 52" x 67" Great photographs implicitly should be rare. In my mind, if a contemporary photograph is sufficiently powerful in content and evocative in light and line to be looked at for a long time, there is a chance it has something that is art, not reportage. But there is a third variable needed to elevate an image to a higher pantheon: relevance. This is the most elusive of the “holy trinity” of factors I strive to attain. I started exploring the ground-level creative possibilities in Makoko, the largely inaccessible floating town aside Lagos. It may be dubbed the “Venice of Africa,” but with irony—there is no wealth or sophistication here, just poverty, crime, sewage, and waste. It is effectively a no-go zone for the “Yevo,” or white man. I had to have my audience with Makoko’s Chief Aladaton, and my team’s safety was personally guaranteed. It was one of the most surreal a