Nouakchott
“Our father is a really cool imam! This is because he’s very cultivated. He’s always encouraged and supported us even when we set up this association to raise awareness on AIDS.” Soya and Awa
Abstracts
Soya and Awa
"(…) Soya and Awa wanted me to photograph them in the home of their cherished father, next to the charming mosque where he officiates. When we asked our driver to park the car in front of the mosque, he asked us: 'Why are we stopping here?' 'Because this is the house of Soya and Awa. This is where we’re going…' 'No, no, no! It can’t be! No, no!' It was simply beyond belief for him that these two debauched girls, wearing T-shirts and fitted trousers, could be the daughters of such a well-known and venerated imam."
Salka
"(…) We told Salka to meet us on the side of the road where our driver had noticed her. She waited for us, leaning on the door of her rundown 504 pick-up truck, her stocky build enveloped by a black veil that trailed from her head to her feet. (…) With a flick of her hand she swept away my offer to compensate her time that I would surely take up. She was delighted by my interest in her. She was proud of her work and the way she lived. Salka runs a garbage-collection business."
Extracts from Zoé Zoé, Femmes du mondes, 2007, Éditions Gallimard
Works
![MAURITANIA 1222](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvre_bneita.jpg?itok=5FsTS6qs)
Nouakchott, Mauritania
Gouache on paper
46 x 37 cm
![MAURITANIA 1224](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvre_bneita2.jpg?itok=-gT_kCxa)
Nouakchott, Mauritania
Gouache on paper
46 x 74 cm
![MAURITANIA 1226](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvre_bneita3.jpg?itok=kii74Wm0)
Nouakchott, Mauritania
C-Print
140 x 245 cm
![MAURITANIA 681](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvres_montage-awa-soya2.jpg?itok=jztyqmIu)
Mauritania, Nouakchott
Gouache on paper
46 x 74 cm
![MAURITANIA 1302](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvres_awa-soya2_0.jpg?itok=FE62wpBE)
Nouakchott, Mauritania
Gouache and pencil on paper
74 x 46 cm
![MAURITANIA 220](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvres_awa-soya.jpg?itok=jzKQXTGE)
Mauritania, Nouakchott
Polaroid silver print
60 x 40 cm
![MAURITANIA 1232](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvres_awa-soya4.jpg?itok=SiXwI-j4)
Nouakchott, Mauritania
C-Print
163 x 180 cm
![MAURITANIA 1234](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/oeuvre/tit_2017_oeuvres_awa-soya5.jpg?itok=Xn2vLlvt)
Nouakchott, Mauritania
C-Print
180 x 250 cm
Maps
![MAURITANIA 1217](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/cartes/tit_2017_cartes_mauritanie_nouakchott.jpg?itok=sBoTziEf)
Gouache on paper, 80 x 60 cm
![MAURITANIA 1218](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/element-block/public/uploads/cartes/tit_2017_cartes_mauritanie_nouakchott2.jpg?itok=c8EN6N5n)
Gouache on paper, 80 x 60 cm
Making-of
![Illustration Making Of](https://artiste.titouanlamazou.com/sites/default/files/styles/width-half/public/uploads/illustration/tit_2017_makingof_mauritanie_nouakchott.jpg?itok=DfUTvc1c)
Nouadhibou, Mauritania
© Gwen Le Bras
Photography by Claire Nicol