Meet the people of Tamba

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Gagnesseri Seek, WaitressImage source, Giovanni Hänninen
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Gagnesseri Seek, waitress

Comprising 200 portraits, People of Tamba, by Italian photographer Giovanni Hänninen, depicts the residents of Tambacounda, the largest city in eastern Senegal and the point of departure for many migrants heading to Europe.

Hänninen wanted to record the various professionals - from doctors and bankers, to teachers and farmers - in their work environments to highlight their roles in and contribution to society, to counter what he perceives as the negative and numbers-based reporting about migration.

"I decided to present the photographs in large format to show the people of this project on a human scale and thereby create a rapport with the viewer," says Hänninen.

"They are like us; with their past, their present and their aspirations for the future. They represent everyone's history."

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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Adam Wade, bank director

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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Mbaye Ndong, footballer

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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Mariama Ousmane Cissokho, peanut farmer

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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ldrissa Sidibe, beekeeper

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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Bernadette Therese Ngone Thiaw, student

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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Adamo Diallo, cotton farmer

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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Cheikh Faye, shoe seller

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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ldiatou Cissokho, maid

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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The portraits of People of Tamba were publicly displayed as large prints glued to the walls in the streets of different cities. Here, one of the pictures hangs above a street in Dakar.

Image source, Giovanni Hänninen
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The pictures were also on show in European cities, including Paris and Berlin and as seen here in Milan.

The Albers Foundation and Le Korsa will display a selection of photographs at AKAA (Also Known as Africa) art and design fair in Paris, from 8-11 November 2019.