Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
"Thelma & Louise," also by Tempe.
Dubbed "The Studio
of Vanities," the project is a series of staged images of the young
generation of Dakar's cultural entrepreneurs.
Apart from fine arts and staged portraits, Diop's body of work also includes fashion photography -- Image: "Blutiful shades of black."
"I am very
interested in movement; movement of the human body but also of the
fabrics, outfits and styles that are used to embellish the body," says
Diop. "Image: I Feel Like A Bird Today."
Key to his
decision was the success of his "Fashion 2112, Le Futur Du Beau"
series, which was exhibited at Bamako Encounters in 2011.
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
"Thelma & Louise," also by Tempe.
Dubbed "The Studio
of Vanities," the project is a series of staged images of the young
generation of Dakar's cultural entrepreneurs.
Apart from fine arts and staged portraits, Diop's body of work also includes fashion photography -- Image: "Blutiful shades of black."
"I am very
interested in movement; movement of the human body but also of the
fabrics, outfits and styles that are used to embellish the body," says
Diop. "Image: I Feel Like A Bird Today."
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
"Thelma & Louise," also by Tempe.
Dubbed "The Studio
of Vanities," the project is a series of staged images of the young
generation of Dakar's cultural entrepreneurs.
Apart from fine arts and staged portraits, Diop's body of work also includes fashion photography -- Image: "Blutiful shades of black."
"I am very
interested in movement; movement of the human body but also of the
fabrics, outfits and styles that are used to embellish the body," says
Diop. "Image: I Feel Like A Bird Today."
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
"Thelma & Louise," also by Tempe.
Dubbed "The Studio
of Vanities," the project is a series of staged images of the young
generation of Dakar's cultural entrepreneurs.
Apart from fine arts and staged portraits, Diop's body of work also includes fashion photography -- Image: "Blutiful shades of black."
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
"Thelma & Louise," also by Tempe.
Dubbed "The Studio
of Vanities," the project is a series of staged images of the young
generation of Dakar's cultural entrepreneurs.
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
"Thelma & Louise," also by Tempe.
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
"Thelma & Louise," also by Tempe.
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
"Breakfast At Onomo's," by Antoine Tempe, a French-born American photographer with years of working experience in West Africa.
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
"I wanted to
imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and
shot in Africa," explains Diop, who also included "Frida" in the
Onomolliwood series.
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
The artists chose movies they liked and which had influenced them, including "The Matrix," and gave them an African makeover.
Senegal-based
photographers Omar Victor Diop and Antoine Tempe have revisited some of
Hollywood's greatest films, such as "American Beauty," as part of their
Onomolliwood series.
It is one of the iconic modern cinema scenes: Mena Suvari, as Angela
in Oscar-winning "American Beauty," stretches her arms wide as she
basks in a sea of floating rose petals during one of Lester's (Kevin
Spacey) frequent fantasies.
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But when Senegalese photographer Omar Victor Diop
set out to recreate the provocative sequence for his latest project,
finding a bed of red roses proved difficult. Undeterred, Diop found the
solution by using a plant wall inside the hotel where the shoot was
taking place.
"The creative process of
this series itself is very similar to the way African contemporary
creation often takes place," says Diop. "We often have to tweak
concepts and styles from around the world and adapt them to our
context, while preserving their original feel."
That series is "Onomolliwood," a dazzling collection of images in which Diop and Antoine Tempe,
a Senegal-based French-American photographer, revisited several
Hollywood classics to give an African take on some of cinema's most
iconic moments.
The two artists merged
their passion for aesthetics and performance art to offer a collection
of striking images infused with flowing swirls of color, vivacious
textures and dynamic characters.
"I wanted to imagine what these movies would look like if they were conceived and shot in Africa," explains Diop.
Senegalese photographer Omar Victor Diop.
PHOTO: ANTOINE TEMPE
Completely self-taught,
the 33-year-old is a newcomer to Senegal's creative scene. He started
experimenting with cameras on the streets of Dakar in 2010, at a time
when he was still working in corporate communications for a
multinational.
But much to his
surprise, Diop's first conceptual project, the futuristic "Fashion
2112," was selected the following year to be showcased at Bamako
Encounters, Africa's premier photo exhibition.
After that, Diop
decided to fully pursue his passion for photography. He quit his job
last year and quickly started building an eclectic body of work that
spreads from conceptual art to fashion photography and portraits.
CNN's African Voices spoke to Diop about revisiting cinema classics and the transition from the corporate world to art.
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CNN:
"The Matrix," "American Beauty" and "Frida" are just some of the famous
films featured in the Onomolliwood series. What was the inspiration
behind the project?
Omar Victor Diop:
I worked on this project with French-born American photographer Antoine
Tempe after an invitation by the Onomo Hotel Group. We thought that
actually using cinema as a general theme would be a way for our
respective creative universes to meet because cinema involves fashion
and aesthetics, but it also involves an important performance dimension.
We started working with
the movies we liked, the movies that had influenced us. I remember
watching in the 1980s the same movies as the young people of Paris and
New York and maybe Bangkok. At the end of the day we're all the same
young people regardless of where you were born and where you were
raised and somehow I wanted to show this also through the choice of
movies in the series.
CNN: Is part of your artistic goal to show the modern side of Dakar and Senegal?
OVD:
Yes, and it's not even about the new Africa, it's just that because of
globalization and the internet the modernity of Africa has sort of
accelerated. But even back in the 1980s, when I was just a kid, I can
tell you that Dakar was very modernized and international.
Another advantage we
had was that we were open to not only the Western world but the entire
world -- we had African cultural content, Asian content, Chinese or
Indian movies. It's just a shame that all of this, especially the urban
life of the 1980s, is not documented.
It's terrific when you realize that you can actually write your own history as you live your passion.
Omar Victor Diop, photographer
Omar Victor Diop, photographer
So when I think about
creating a new series I always make sure that not only the current
Africa but also the one I grew up is somehow portrayed. I believe it's
the responsibility of a photographer to not only conceptualize but also
come up with some work that can be used as a reference in the future as
a history document.
CNN: How is it working as an artist in Dakar today?
OVD:
It's very exciting being part of the creative scene in Dakar right now.
I think the period we are living in is a breakthrough, in the sense
that there is a sustained and growing interest for "another Africa."
Also, African artists are now aware that they can communicate to the
world, and speak about and for themselves. It's terrific when you
realize that you can actually write your own history as you live your
passion.
CNN: What kind of themes fascinate you?
OVD: I
am very interested in movement; movement of the human body but also of
the fabrics, outfits and styles that are used to embellish the body.
Even in my fashion photography I always make sure that there is a
movement that is captured, and that tells a story.
I'm also interested in
the aesthetics of the 1970s and the 1980s, especially in Africa, and I
always try to recreate that with the use of colors and styling
references.
It's very exciting being part of the creative scene in Dakar right now.
Omar Victor Diop, photographer
Omar Victor Diop, photographer
And I'm also interested in personalities; that's why I've started a series of portraits called "The Studio of Vanities."
The reason behind it was that I wanted to somehow pay homage and also
document the youngest generation of Dakar's cultural entrepreneurs --
I'm convinced that many of these people are going to be very successful
and are going to bring a lot of great things to the cultural sector in
the next few years.
CNN: How was the transition from the corporate world to becoming artist?
OVD: I
quit my job a year ago; it was a quite bold decision that scared many
people around me because being an artist was not considered as a valid
option. I come from a family where my mum is a lawyer and my dad is a
chartered accountant -- both of them having very senior jobs throughout
their careers -- and I attended top schools that were very advanced and
quite expensive. With the money my family invested in me, of course you
can imagine my mum being quite devastated, but I now have their full
support.
