The Vault
Moments and missives from our world
June
22
2010
Bafana Bye-Bye
The vuvuzelas will continue to bleat like stunned cattle, even after Bafana Bafana has been eliminated in the World Cup.
Twelve years ago, South Africa made its initial appearance in the World Cup, opening against France in Marseille. A few thousand gathered at a drive-in theater in Johannesburg, braving the winter chill to support the team, with barrel fires keeping the fans warm.
February
11
2010
In Paarl 20 Years Ago
Nelson Mandela walked as a free man for the first time in 27 years.
This image is from a rally in Johannesburg a few years later.
February
01
2010
Moving History from Manhattan to Austin
The print archive from the Magnum Photos collective recently made its way to Austin, where it will be studied and exhibited for the next five years. Michael Dell, the computer maker, and two art collecting partners made the purchase, and insured the archive for $100 million as it was transported from Manhattan.
Randy Kennedy described the sale for readers of the the grey lady. “It is one of the most important photography archives of the 20th century, consisting of more than 180,000 images known as press prints, the kind of prints once made by the collective to circulate to magazines and newspapers. They are marked on their reverse sides with decades of historical impasto — stamps, stickers and writing chronicling their publication histories — that speaks to their role in helping to create the collective photo bank of modern culture.”
January
13
2010
How to Help in Haiti
During the years I worked as a photojournalist, CARE and Medecins Sans Frontieres impressed me the most for their dedication and ability to help those who are in need. MSF provided this traveling photographer with a safe place to sleep in Sudan, as did CARE in Zaire, and a decade ago, I worked with the Atlanta based CARE on a project in Ghana.
For those who would like to donate to the people of Haiti, please click to assist via CARE and MSF.
April
12
2009
July
17
2008
May
15
2008
October
28
2007
Carjacking in Johannesburg claims Lucky Dube
South African reggae star Lucky Dube was buried on Sunday. He was killed shot dead in front of his children in a botched carjacking attempt on 18 October. The high-profile killing prompted new calls for a crackdown on violent crime in my former home of South Africa, which has one of the highest crime rates in the world.
Police figures show there were nearly 20,000 murders in the year to the end of March, up 2.4 percent on the year before. The number of rapes, carjackings and assaults also remained high.
Eight years ago, I was working on a magazine assignment in Alexandra Township, outside Johannesburg, when two men with pistols relieved me of my vehicle and cameras. Thankfully no shots were fired. I spent much of the next four months working on a photographic essay about carjackings in Johannesburg. A couple images from that essay follow from the archive.
