Tribal beauty by Benjamin Angel

Women from the Hamar tribe (which gathers a bit more than 40 000 people in the South of Ethiopia) pay considerable attention to their physical appearance.

Magazine

Our printed editions, circulating throughout various galleries, festivals and agencies are dipped in creativity.

The spirit of DODHO’s printed edition is first and foremost an opportunity to connect with a photographic audience that values the beauty of print and those photographers exhibited within the pages of this magazine.

We invite professional and amateur photographers from all around the world to share their work in our printed edition.

https://www.dodho.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ban25e32.jpg

Women from the Hamar tribe (which gathers a bit more than 40 000 people in the South of Ethiopia) pay considerable attention to their physical appearance. Unmarried Hamar women wear large beaded collars that are usually made of green, red, and black coloured beads, put above embroidered goatskins.

Married women have two metal rims instead of beaded collars. Since Hamer men are polygamous, first wives wear in addition to the metal hoops around their neck a leather band with a large disk.

First wives are usually better treated than second and third wives, though whipping by husbands is unfortunately quite common. The ceremony during which a young man becomes an adult by jumping above a few bulls tied together is accompanied by the whipping of his sisters, who entice men to strike harder, as a strange way to demonstrate their sisterly love.

All women have dreadlocks, patiently crafted by putting clay and butter in their hair, giving them a red colour.  Newly-wed women are completely covered in a butter and ochre mixture and shut in their home alone for six months after the wedding to ensure that any child they have belongs to her husband.

This photo series show women of all age, whose portraits were taken in black and white in the region of Turmi. The frequent sophistication of their appearance – despite their extreme poverty – illustrates a simple but universal search for beauty. Butter, iron necklaces, red soil and even bicycle chains are mixed in a rather unique but powerful way to reach a simple but often stunning combination, where tribal beauty matches and sometimes exceeds modern one.

About Benjamin Angel

Benjamin Angel is a French photographer based in Brussels. His work is primarily in black and white, though he has already published some colour series in the online edition of Dodho Magazine (‘in the heart of the Omo valley’ and ‘Priests of Ethiopia’).  His photos on the inhabitants of Jerusalem have been gathered in a dedicated book in 2019 (People of Jerusalem. Husson editions. Belgium ). Part of his work on Ethiopian tribes has also been published in a recent collective book (‘Tranches de vie #2’. Husson editions. Belgium). His photos were shown in several exhibitions in Belgium. [Official Website]

 

Other Stories

stay in touch
Join our mailing list and we'll keep you up to date with all the latest stories, opportunities, calls and more.
We use Sendinblue as our marketing platform. By Clicking below to submit this form, you acknowledge that the information you provided will be transferred to Sendinblue for processing in accordance with their terms of use
We’d love to
Thank you for subscribing!
Submission
Dodho Magazine accepts submissions from emerging and professional photographers from around the world.
Their projects can be published among the best photographers and be viewed by the best professionals in the industry and thousands of photography enthusiasts. Dodho magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted project. Due to the large number of presentations received daily and the need to treat them with the greatest respect and the time necessary for a correct interpretation our average response time is around 5/10 business days in the case of being accepted.
- Between 10/30 images of your best images, in case your project contains a greater number of images which are part of the same indivisible body of work will also be accepted. You must send the images in jpg format to 1200px and 72dpi and quality 9. (No borders or watermarks)
- A short biography along with your photograph. (It must be written in the third person)
- Title and full text of the project with a minimum length of 300 words. (Texts with lesser number of words will not be accepted)
This is the information you need to start preparing your project for its presentation
To send it, you must compress the folder in .ZIP format and use our Wetransfer channel specially dedicated to the reception of works. Links or projects in PDF format will not be accepted. All presentations are carefully reviewed based on their content and final quality of the project or portfolio. If your work is selected for publication in the online version, it will be communicated to you via email and subsequently it will be published.
Contact
How can we help? Got an idea or something you'd like share? Please use the adjacent form, or contact contact@dodho.com
Thank You. We will contact you as soon as possible.
Submission
Dodho Magazine accepts submissions from emerging and professional photographers from around the world.
Their projects can be published among the best photographers and be viewed by the best professionals in the industry and thousands of photography enthusiasts. Dodho magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any submitted project. Due to the large number of presentations received daily and the need to treat them with the greatest respect and the time necessary for a correct interpretation our average response time is around 5/10 business days in the case of being accepted. This is the information you need to start preparing your project for its presentation.
To send it, you must compress the folder in .ZIP format and use our Wetransfer channel specially dedicated to the reception of works. Links or projects in PDF format will not be accepted. All presentations are carefully reviewed based on their content and final quality of the project or portfolio. If your work is selected for publication in the online version, it will be communicated to you via email and subsequently it will be published.
Get in Touch
How can we help? Do you have an idea or something you'd like to share? Please use the form provided, or contact us at contact@dodho.com
Thank You. We will contact you as soon as possible.