2009 - The four continents of MAXIMILIEN BRUGGMANN

Le Manoir de la ville de Martigny


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Intimacy

His second homeland: the land of the Blue Men, the free men. Fascinated by the harmony between the landscape and the people living within, compelled by the feeling of freedom he shares with the nomads in their day to day in the Sahara, Maximilien Bruggmann extends his stay with them and reports on their life from every corner of the desert.

As he travels, his lenses capture unique and eternal moments. Little by little, his apartment fills with objects he has collected as silent witnesses of a deep relationship with noble knights voyaging through the seas of sand.

#1

Man from the Peul-Bororo tribe

A bow and arrow hunter in leather sarong: what an amazing motif to photograph! This man from the Peul-Bororo tribe was photographed in the Sahelian area of Tchin-Tabaradene, in central Niger.

#2

The salines of Teguidda-n-Tessoumt

A surreal lunar landscape in the middle of the Sahara: the salines of Teguidda-n-Tessoumt on the Hoggar road, which leads from the Algerian border to Agadez (Niger). The saline water is taken from the source in buckets dug in the salt-gorged sand. The sun does the rest.

#3

A caravan in the evening sun

In the evening sun, the ageless image of a caravan in the desert spreads amidst the endless decoration of the Ténéré (Niger), east of the Aïr mountains. The Sahara is chiefly flat, but steep dunes pose obstacles that cannot always be avoided.

#4

The “salt route” from Bilma to Agadez

The Ténéré is one of the least populated regions in the world, except here on the “salt route” from Bilma to Agadez (Niger), where loud trucks have replaced the steady, serene pace of the camel caravans.

#5

Izane Erg

A Tuareg caravan seeks its way through the dunes of the Izane Erg in the Ténéré, at the edge of the Aïr mountains (Niger).

#6

The “crab pincer”

Between the Aïr and the Ténéré (Niger), it is dusk in the Sahara and the “crab pincer” of the mountains suddenly forms one of the most beautiful dunes in the world.

#7

The arches of Ti-Sfad

On the high plateau of the Tassili n´Ajjer (Algeria), the arches of Ti-Sfad constitute a shrine of peace and quiet as they offer protection from the howling winds.

#8

Azelaï

Azelaï is the name given to the caravans that transport salt from Bilma to Agadez. The route is strenuous and dangerous even for the dromedaries, as proved by this skeleton in the foreground.

#9

Tuareg tribe leaders

Every year, regular visitors meet at the Chouffane, a camel riding festival linked to an annual market that takes place at the Tarat oasis on the Lebanese border (Tassili n´Ajjer, Algeria). On this occasion, the Tuareg tribe leaders, who otherwise rarely meet, gather together in one of the tents.

#10

Fadi playing the imzad

At the Djanet oasis in the Tassili n´Ajjer (Algeria): Fadi is playing the imzad. This single-stringed bowed instrument is made out of a calabash and horse hair, accompanied by the singing of men, who tell of war, love and nomadic life without end...

#11

Tea time

Tea time in the small village of I-n-Jitane (Niger, Erazer valley), in the middle of the Sahelian region.

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