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Intimacy in a violent context: photographs from Mbouda (Cameroon) in a time of troubles
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 May 2024
Abstract
All archives have silences, which may come to resonate, even if they may never speak. What is unsaid or unsayable may be understood and appreciated even if never enunciated and never heard. The photographs of the Cameroonian photographer Jacques Toussele from 1960 to 1980 were taken against a background of violence: the uprising of the Union des Populations du Cameroun (UPC), which started before Cameroonian independence and continued for the next decade. The fight against UPC ‘terrorists’ by the Cameroonian state and the French military was marked by violence on all sides. There is no evidence of this in the Toussele archive, which consists of administrative ID portraits and recreational shots depicting friends and family and various displays of intimacy. The Toussele photographic archive shows young people in Mbouda exhibiting the global tropes of modernity. Soon after independence in Ouest Cameroon, both the violence and the promises of 1960s modernity were challenges to traditional sociality. A local reading makes it clear that the violence was ever present in its absence and denial: to perform an event was no small achievement and, like the birth of a child, was to be celebrated and marked by photography. Intimacy was achieved against a background of violence and celebrated for this very reason.
Résumé
Toutes les archives ont des silences qui peuvent se mettre à résonner, même sans parler. Le non-dit ou l’indicible peut être compris et apprécié même sans être énoncé ni entendu. Les photos prises par le photographe camerounais Jacques Toussele de 1960 à 1980 l’ont été sur fond de violence : le soulèvement de l’Union des populations du Cameroun (UPC), qui a commencé avant l’indépendance du Cameroun et s’est poursuivi durant la décennie suivante. La lutte contre les « terroristes » de l’UPC menée par l’État camerounais et par l’armée française a été marquée par des violences de toutes parts. Les archives photographiques de Toussele, qui se composent de portraits d’identité administratifs, de photos récréatives de rencontres amicales et familiales et de scènes d’intimité, n’en témoignent pas. Elles montrent des jeunes de Mbouda présentant les tropes de la modernité. Peu après l’indépendance, dans l’Ouest du Cameroun, la violence et les promesses de modernité des années 1960 furent des défis pour la socialité traditionnelle. Une lecture locale montre clairement que la violence était omniprésente dans son absence et son déni : organiser un événement n’était pas une mince affaire et, comme la naissance d’un enfant, se devait d’être célébré et marqué par la photographie. L’intimité se créait sur fond de violence et se célébrait pour cette raison.
Resumo
Todos os arquivos têm silêncios, que podem vir a ressoar, mesmo que nunca falem. O que não é dito ou não pode ser dito pode ser compreendido e apreciado, mesmo que nunca tenha sido enunciado e nunca tenha sido ouvido. As fotografias do fotógrafo camaronês Jacques Toussele, de 1960 a 1980, foram tiradas num contexto de violência: a revolta da Union des Populations du Cameroun (UPC), que começou antes da independência dos Camarões e continuou durante a década seguinte. A luta do Estado camaronês e dos militares franceses contra os ‘terroristas’ da UPC foi marcada pela violência de todos os lados. O arquivo de Toussele não apresenta qualquer indício deste facto, sendo constituído por retratos de identificação administrativos e fotografias recreativas de amigos e familiares e várias manifestações de intimidade. O arquivo fotográfico de Toussele mostra os jovens de Mbouda a exibir os tropos globais da modernidade. Pouco depois da independência dos Camarões Ocidentais, tanto a violência como as promessas da modernidade dos anos 60 constituíram desafios à socialidade tradicional. Uma leitura local torna claro que a violência estava sempre presente na sua ausência e negação: realizar um evento não era um feito pequeno e, tal como o nascimento de uma criança, devia ser celebrado e marcado pela fotografia. A intimidade era alcançada num contexto de violência e celebrada por essa mesma razão.
- Type
- Violence and intimacy
- Information
- Copyright
- © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the International African Institute
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