Sunday Market: Coconut Alley
“Coconut Alley” / Buka, Autonomous Region of Bougainville, PNG / November 2014
Photographer’s Note: Men and women in perfectly-toned dark skin — many adorned with facial and body tattoos only their fascinating tribal cultures could explain — milling about under the shade on often humid and glaring equatorial days in their bright multicolored garb that can only suggest deep homage to their national symbol, the majestic bird-of-paradise. The commonness of this sight in the rural areas of Papua New Guinea was the wellspring that spawned inspiration for this series. The exciting blend of light, color and texture in the images was slightly exaggerated for greater impact. Imagining the full-sized versions of these images framed and hung on the walls of rooms and corridors of an establishment gave a further boost of inspiration.
The drag of endless mental work in a strange land takes its toll. Fatigue can kill so petty escapades provide hopeful deviations from the brewing madness. An aging DSLR keeps good company to a walk around the neighbourhood, a short drive to a scenic place, or a silent recollection in a quiet nook granting that the host community and the elements of nature would allow one a safe passage to solitude and contemplation. Loneliness quickly turns to joy when something exciting gets captured by the cam’s shutter then set free into the laptop’s screen followed by electric words that rush from the fingers to the keyboard in an effort to describe the moment. Alas, the brain is alive once again!
