La Marzocco presents “ORIGIN” at Out of the Box 2015, Fine Art Photography from Tanzania by Jakob de Boer (in the picture), 23-24 October, in via Forcella 6, Milan from 10 am – 6 pm at the “Songwa Lodge”.
Songwa – “Its untamed beauty is disarming. There is a richness here; a fertility that stands in stark contrast to the common perception of need. Every inch of this land is brimming with life expressed through countless colours and sounds. Every face I came across reflected a consonance with the environment . . . There was a peacefulness in these people that is difficult to describe; a grace in their movement even when negotiating the most arduous terrain, or attending to a taxing task.” Bess Fotopolous-de Boer following her first trip to Songwa Estates, near Mbeya, Tanzania with the photographer, Jakob de Boer.
Jakob de Boer, a Canadian film director/producer, fine art photographer and visual storyteller who, through his photography shares a desire to gain an understanding into the world around us with the camera acting as an investigative tool; a microscope. Influenced by painters like John Singer Sargent, Vermeer and Cavavaggio, Jakob spent years studying and deconstructing composition under the tutelage of numerous painters and darkroom master printers. His work has been influenced by filmmakers Ridley Scott, David Lean and Hayao Miazaki and their use of imagery to evoke emotion and tell a story.
Leica – When not shooting his own projects, Jakob is a prototype tester for Leica Camera. Indeed, on his first trip to the Songwa plantation in March 2015, he was on assignment both for La Marzocco and Leica, testing the Leica M Monochrom (Typ 246) code named “Elliott” which has since been released on the market. Leica’s M246 captures authentic black and white photography, with stunning resolution and lovely subtle tonality.
Printing – Each image, a gelatin silver print, selenium toned and hand-made in Paris in collaboration with master printers, is the result of a laborious process that ultimately leads to the dark room, but utilizes digital technology to enhance the process, ensure consistency across the prints and achieve true black and white tones. The resulting images encompass subtlety and tonality while creating a highly atmospheric quality.
Exhibit – Jakob’s large artistic photos depict the singularity and beauty of the setting, reveal the daily lives of the small community, where women are the protagonists, and narrate stories which invoke emotions and celebrate nature by the play of light skilfully captured by the eye of the photographer, an eye that is not only a witness, but a companion on a journey into the activities of the Songwa plantation.
La Marzocco Cares – A percentage of the proceeds for the sale of the photos, now and into the future, will be donated to benefit the community in the immediate vicinity of the plantation.
