Raymond Depardon Hear Them Speak

On the occasion of the exhibition Native Land, Stop Eject in 2009 and the publication of the catalog, the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain and Steidl published Hear Them Speak, a collection of color Polaroids by Raymond Depardon.
In the course of some ten journeys, from Central America to South America, from Europe to Africa, Raymond Depardon went out to meet small ethnic groups who are hanging on determinedly to their land and their language: the Kawésqar, Chipaya, Quechua, Mapuche, Afar, Occitans, Bretons, Guarani, and Yanomami. He recorded their statements in their mother tongue and took Polaroid photographs to go with them.
In the resulting portraits, these peoples express the strong bond that ties them to their land and culture, offering a moving demonstration of the way land, speech, and memory are intimately interconnected.