The Gentlemen of BacongoDaniele Tamagni

• Les Sapeurs a group of men devoted to flamboyantly dressing in the latest high fashions

• (Society for the Advancement of People of Elegance) from the French (La Societé des Ambianceurs et des Personnes Élégantes ) ”.

• The “Sape” began when Congo was a French colony. Many Congolese people were fascinated with French elegance and decided to imitate the French look, a style which was further developed during the transition to independence.

• The movement started in the 1970s and can be traced as an act of rebellion against the communist dictator Mubutu who curtailed European imports in favour of traditional African garb.

• The “Sape” is an art and the real gentleman have to know the concept of gentleness and good manners related to the inherent moral code of the individual. as a way of being..

• The region gained independence in the but a bloody civil war plunged the country in to chaos.

• This chaos and ensuing civil war only heighten the role of the SAPE in Congolese society. The “Sape” by definition is a non violent individual. The “Sape” is an art and the real gentleman have to know the concept of gentleness and good manners related to the inherent moral code of the individual. as a way of being

• With the average wage in Congo being as little as 0.30p a day the expensive European clothing could set a SAPE back 6 months wages. However they aspire they have high Aspiration and use fashion as a means of escapism from the hard life that they are in

In relation to the rule of thirds what is the focal point of this picture

How could the framing in this picture be change to create more of an impact

How does this picture represent the cultural struggles of the Congo and the Sape role in that struggle

How does the photographer create a sense of authority and respect in this image

The image could be a representation of the emergence of a new

nation and the role the Sape played in that can

you see why