12. SA-born photographer Kevin Mackintosh’s new exhibition of portraits
SA-born photographer Kevin Mackintosh uses hyper-styled elements to create a fresh take on the African portrait for a new exhibition in Cape Town.
In the 1950s and ’60s, trailblazing lensmen from Mali and Burkina Faso captured youth culture in a range of arresting and intimate portraits, using props and lighting to transform urban slicksters, party-goers and defiant motorbike riders into works of art.
Now, South African-born photographer Kevin Mackintosh (below) builds on the techniques used by these artists to reimagine the formal portrait. “I’m inspired by the way West African photographers like the late Malick Sidibé, the late Seydou Keïta, and Sanlé Sory created ‘photo booth’ setups and used props, set design and styling,” says Mackintosh, who is currently based in London. “Their work has a real resonance for me in a modern stylisation of portrait subjects.”
Mackintosh’s aesthetic approach for his latest exhibition, Hero, pays homage to these photographers, and in each portrait he combines a controlled studio environment with landscape elements. But what really sets his pieces apart are the signature objects – whether recycled or repurposed – that each of his characters holds.
“We carefully cast models and real people and worked closely with production designer Daryl McGregor on the concept of each image,” MacKintosh says of his process. “Colour and provenance were key elements in the sourcing of props and we investigated the backgrounds, and the characters’ lighting and make-up, to complete the story.”
Hero is the culmination of a five-year passion project and was shot in and around South Africa. The exhibition runs from 22 February to 10 April 2020 at Deepest Darkest Gallery in De Waterkant, Cape Town.
THE SIGNATURE OBJECTS
THAT EACH CHARACTER HOLDS ARE WHAT REALLY SET THE PIECES APART.