An epic journey through North and South Sudan
- Text by HUCK HQ
- Photography by Claude Iverné/Elnour
Claude Inverné has been shooting in the Sudan for nearly two decades now. Since his first visit back in 1999, the French photographer has been travelling the region extensively, capturing the immense economic, cultural and environmental changes of both the north and the south.
The resulting body of work, known as Bilad es Sudan, is now on display at New York’s Aperture Gallery. Described as a “Sudanese epic”, the project can be categorised into three groups. The first, shot in black and white, focuses on his travels through North Sudan. The second, shot in colour, shifts to his visit to the South.
Claude Iverné, Ahmad Ali Abdulgari, Bergo people, Asylum seeker, Trégastel, Dec. 2016
Claude Iverné, Mnaïma Adjak, Shénabla People, Awasma Clan, Dar Jawama, North Kordofan, Aug. 2001
The third and final stage looks at the plight of Sudanese refugees – specifically those attempting to flee to France. Iverné joined them on the journey, documenting their travels from “the nomadic tents and deserts of Sudan to the outskirts of French cities.”
The exhibition was first shown at the Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson, with Iverné securing the Henri Cartier-Bresson Award in 2015. It will now run at the Aperture Gallery until November 9th, along with a book to accompany the exhibition (Claude Iverné – Bilad es Sudan, published by Éditions Xavier Barral).
Claude Iverné, Remains of a cafeteria, Jardin du 6 avril, Khartoum, June 2001
Claude Iverné, Pyramid, Meroitic Period, Jebel Barkal, Dar Cheiguir, Nubia, Jan. 2004
Claude Iverné, Street scene, Juba, Dec. 2015
Claude Iverné, Ahmed Abdulah Ahmed, Jawama People,
Tidjamé Clan, Peasant, Gum arabic harvest, Edlbacha el Galab, Um Badr, North Darfur, Jan. 2002
Claude Iverné, Simulacrum, Guy Roger Janda, High school student, French, Évry, Dec. 2016
Claude Iverné, Secondary School, Seventh Day Adventist School, Hai Kuwait District, Juba, Dec. 2015
Claude Iverné, House of Fayçal Mohamed Jaber, Tribe Nouba Miri, « Mayo » Camp for displaced Umdurman people, Mandela Extention, Khartoum, Oct. 2005
Claude Iverné, Construction site, Hai Jalaba District, Juba, 2015
Claude Iverné, Naturalised dog, Toshka, Dar Sukkott, Nubia, Feb. 2002. Pas-de-Calais, 2016
Claude Iverné, Apprentice Graduation Ceremony, Saint-Vincentde-Paul Training Centre, Sister Emmanuelle, Lologo District, Juba, Dec. 2015
Claude Iverné: Bilad es Sudan is running at New York’s Aperture Gallery until November 9, 2017
Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
Latest on Huck
Exploring the impact of colonialism on Australia’s Indigenous communities
New exhibition, ‘Under a Southern Star: Identity and Environment in Australian Photography’ interrogates the use of photography as a tool of objectification and subjugation.
Written by: Miss Rosen
My sister disappeared when we were children. Years later, I retraced her footsteps
After a car crash that saw Magnum photographer Lindokuhle Sobekwa hospitalised, his sister ran away from their home in South Africa. His new photobook, I Carry Her Photo With Me, documents his journey in search of her.
Written by: Lindokuhle Sobekwa
Inside New York City’s hedonistic 2000s skateboarding scene
New photobook, ‘Epicly Later’d’ is a lucid survey of the early naughties New York skate scene and its party culture.
Written by: Isaac Muk
Did we create a generation of prudes?
Has the crushing of ‘teen’ entertainment and our failure to represent the full breadth of adolescent experience produced generation Zzz? Emma Garland investigates.
Written by: Emma Garland
How to shoot the world’s most gruelling race
Photographer R. Perry Flowers documented the 2023 edition of the Winter Death Race and talked through the experience in Huck 81.
Written by: Josh Jones
An epic portrait of 20th Century America
‘Al Satterwhite: A Retrospective’ brings together scenes from this storied chapter of American life, when long form reportage was the hallmark of legacy media.
Written by: Miss Rosen