archivePhotographs 1985-2005

Mark Howard

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Published 2005 by Base25 EditionsCopyright © Mark Howard 2005

Mark Howard asserts his right under theCopyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988to be identified as the author of thiswork.

Printed by APG on 100% chlorine freerecycled paper.

First Edition February 2005

ISBN 0 9549789 0 0

A catalogue record for this book isavailable from the British Library.

Words from the Elvis Costello song‘Shipbuilding’ used by permission.Shipbuilding Words and Music by ElvisCostello and Clive Langer © Copyright1982 Sideways Songs/Plangent Visions MusicLimited and Warner/Chappell Music Limited(50%) BMG Music Publishing Limited(50%) Warner/Chappell Music Limited,London W6 8BS Used by permission ofMusic Sales Limited and International MusicPublications Limited. All Rights Reserved.International Copyright Secured.

Cover photo‘Jardin du Champ de Mars, Paris’

Base25 Editions4 Knollys RoadLondon SW16 2JZTel: 020 8769 9281email: sales@base25.com www.base25.com

UK price £15

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archivePhotographs 1985-2005

Mark Howard

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‘With all the will in the worldDiving for dear life

When we could be diving for pearls’

– Shipbuilding, Elvis Costello

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Foreword

The Eiffell Tower, a spectacular national monument oftenglorified in images, becomes an everyday backdrop forthose who pass by it every day. It is images whichtransform, rather than reinforce, our preconceptionswhich have the greatest impact upon us.

I have been privileged to visit so many places over thelast 20 years, but more so to have shared time, food andconversation with so many fascinating people.

From those encounters I have learned that there is acommonality between us all, despite our circumstances,that is easily forgotten and rarely mentioned. An averagefamily conversation over breakfast in a remote village inSierra Leone will normally be no different to one heldover breakfast in High Wycombe. It will be about theday ahead, organising meetings with friends and family,discussing school or what work the day has in store.

Despite the emotive images we consume on a daily basisthrough our television sets and newspapers, for the mostpart the poorest people simply ‘get on with life’: they donot spend every waking hour begging for help andbemoaning their situation.

We have become accustomed to a grossly simplifiedimpression of poverty, which tells us that we hold theanswers in our pockets. Packaged as entertainment,

I wonder if such simplifications serve to reinforcepreconceptions and maintain a status quo whichultimately harms, rather than helps, the poor.

Released from the burdens of unsustainable debt andunfair trade restrictions, dependence on charity andforeign aid could diminish, a context for bettergovernance would be created, and great strides forwardcould be made. Making that happen is an enormous anddaunting challenge, but it is achievable.

In the meantime, for over one billion people, povertyforms the monumental backdrop passed by each day. Inthat context it is their resourcefulness, resilience, anddignity that inspires the most. It is my hope that morethan a glimpse of that dignity is conveyed in these pages.

The images are not presented in chronological order.Instead, I have ordered and juxtaposed them to provokedifferent responses from the viewer than would likely bemade were the images to be seen in isolation.

As a result, there is a broad narrative to the book, andwithin that are a number of smaller themes. I am alsohopeful that each individual image speaks for itself, andso the only text I feel necessary is a brief explanatorycaption on each page.

Mark Howard, February 2005

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For Helen and Lauren

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1

Sifting rice, Amazon,northern Bolivia

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2

Nuns on walkabout, Madras, India

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3

A walk in the park,Sunday afternoon,Paris, France

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4

Swimmer, Gizo, Solomon Islands

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5

Aymaran womanwalking to work, LaPaz, Bolivia

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6

Street crossing,Madras, India

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7

Swimmer, Tamil Nadu,India

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8

Processing and packingtuna fish, Gizo,Solomon Islands

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9

Factory workers resting,Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands

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10

Drying coca leaves,Chapare ‘RedZone’, Bolivia

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11

Drugs police guard thewreckage of a lightaircraft shot down overthe Chapare ‘RedZone’, Bolivia

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12

Sugar plantationworker, near Ba, Fiji

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13

Miner in collapsedtin mine shaft,Oruro, Bolivia

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14

Tea picker, NuwaraEliya, Sri Lanka

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15

‘Le Marron Inconnu’(the unknown slave),monument, Port-au-Prince, Haiti

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16

Shoes at the entranceto a mosque,

Manchester, UK

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17

Washing before Fridayprayers, mosque,Birmingham, UK

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18

Friday prayers,mosque,

Manchester, UK

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Preacher, La Gonave,Haiti

19

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20

‘Puja day’,Buddhist temple,

Colombo, Sri Lanka

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21

Hindu temple,Madurai, India

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22

Schoolgirl inMadras, India

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23

Woman inMadras, India

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24

Rural clinic,Solomon Islands

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25

Operating on a youngboy, La Paz, Bolivia

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26

Christening, El Altovillage, Bolivia

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27

Funeral, Vava’u, Tonga

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28

Children in anAmazonian village

school, Bolivia

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29

School children,Nottingham, UK

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‘El Gran Poder’,Fiesta, La Paz,

Bolivia

30

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31

Procession throughLalihun village,Sierra Leone

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32

‘Wannakam’ (welcome),Tamil Nadu, India

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33

Mending the nets,Lalihun village, Sierra Leone

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34

Resident in a home forthe elderly, Colombo,

Sri Lanka

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35

Village chief, Solomon Islands

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36

Wall painting andgraffiti, La Paz, Bolivia

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Church steward, nearKandy, Sri Lanka

37

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38

Glenfada Park, Bogside,Derry, Northern Ireland

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39

Late for school, SantaCruz, Bolivia

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40

Shopkeeper with hisson, Guadalcanal,

Solomon Islands

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41

Grandfather andgrandson, Njualuahun,Sierra Leone

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42

Live-in sugar plantationworker with new baby, near

Santa Cruz, Bolivia

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43

Street childrensniffing glue, SantaCruz, Bolivia

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44

Calm beyond the storm:La Gonave, Haiti

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Mark Howard was born in Birkenhead in1962. He has worked as a designer andphotographer for over twenty years. Inthat time he has travelled extensively bothprivately and on commission and thisbook brings together a selection of imagesfrom the period.

His work has been widely publishedwithin the aid and development educationsector, and has been exhibited in London.

He lives in South London with his wife,Helen, and their daughter Lauren.

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Base25 Editions, London

9 780954 978907

ISBN 0-9549789-0-0

archiveArchive final for web:Archive 29/10/08 12:13 Page 46