en
Alexis Cordesse

Populations in danger

Rwanda, one genocide later
Kabul, a Weary War
Burundi under Terror
Foča, Absolut Serbia

Edito

 Alexis Cordesse headed for the heart of disputed territories to meet Populations in Danger. Among Rwanda's scars of mass graves and broken-down infrastructure; he focused on the traces of genocide. His simple images show "the banality of evil".

The Films

EYAL-SIVAN-ALEXIS-CORDESSE-POPULATIONS-IN-DANGER-RWANDA-GENOCIDE-THEDARKROOMRUMOUR-2
13’
Itsembatsemba. Rwanda, one genocide later | Alexis Cordesse

Visually narrating Rwanda's path from genocide to healing.

This film casts a new eye on the spiral of hatred that led to the Rwandan genocide. In 1996, two years after the horror, photographer Alexis Cordesse records the first commemorations and visits certain places that have remained intact.
He matches up his photographs based on the massacres with radio archives of the time urging participation. Yesterday's violence resonates with the horrors it produced.

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EYAL-SIVAN-ALEXIS-CORDESSE-POPULATIONS-IN-DANGER-AFGHANISTAN-KABUL-THEDARKROOMRUMOUR-4
11’
Kabul, a Weary War | Alexis Cordesse

Capturing Kabul's spirit in the shadow of conflict.

This film, made from photographs and sound recordings, is a human testimony of the siege of Kabul in the years of conflict that followed the Russian withdrawal from Afghanistan. In 1995, Alexis Cordesse travelled to the besieged city. His photos show the people getting organized despite the fighting, and the sounds collected on the spot bring the stills to life. Young people at play, getting married… life goes on.

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EYAL-SIVAN-ALEXIS-CORDESSE-POPULATIONS-IN-DANGER-THEDARKROOMRUMOUR-8
12’
Burundi under Terror | Alexis Cordesse

Documenting hope amid despair in post-conflict Burundi.

This film provides rare testimony of the little-known genocide that shook Burundi six months before Rwanda. A little-documented slice of history that triggered the flight of tens of thousands of people. Three years after the massacre, Alexis Cordesse visits the region and the refugee camps are still there. He photographs the aftermath of the chaos and collects these unheard voices.

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EYAL-SIVAN-ALEXIS-CORDESSE-POPULATIONS-IN-DANGER-FOCA-WAR-BOSNIA-THEDARKROOMRUMOUR-8
11’
Foča, Absolut Serbia | Alexis Cordesse

Foča's story told in images, a testament to survival and memory.

This film revisits the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina through the history of the town of Foča. Through his photos, Alexis Cordesse is looking for traces of the silent violence that befell this town five years previously.
He aligns these images with interviews collected after the war and indictments made public by the International Criminal Court.

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Linked Articles

Violence
André Rouillé by André Rouillé

Violence

linked to Crime Scenes (How to become a forensic photographer)

Violence is an infinitely diverse phenomenon in terms of its sectors, its actors, its victims, its forms, its practices and its intensities. Not all violence is the same. It can be private, public, and even legal (if not legitimate), like police violence.

Further exploration

Bibliography

Resources

Instagram

• 2010 LUCIEN & RODOLPHE HERVÉ PRICE CATALOGUE - artist: Alexis Cordesse ; 2010 ; Vimagies editions ; French   

• INFERNO - artist: James Nachtwey ; 2000 ; Phaidon 

• DEATH, IMAGE, MEMORY: THE GENOCIDE IN RWANDA AND ITS AFTERMATH IN PHOTOGRAPHY AND DOCUMENTARY FILM - author: Piotr Cieplak ; 2017 ; Palgrave Macmillan

• SMALL COUNTRY - author: Gaël Faye ; translator: Sarah Ardizzone ; 2019 ; Vintage

• DES TAMBOURS DANS L’OREILLE D’UN SOURD - artist: Teddy Mazina ; 2015 ; Exhibitions International ; bilingual: English-French

• LES BORDS RÉELS - artist: Adrien Selbert ; 2021 ; Le Bec en L’Air Editions ; bilingual: English-French

Alexis Cordesse’s website

Eyal Sivan’s website

Nicolas Becker - Bureau du Son’s website

The Day Nobody Died, War Photography, and the Violence of the Image - Canadian Art Review Article

Rwanda Genocide: 100 Days of Slaughter - BBC News Article

The Day Nobody Died, War Photography, and the Violence of the Image - Canadian Art Review Article

The Cost of War - Afghan Experiences of Conflict - Oxfam Article

Burundi Profile - Timeline - BBC News Article

A Photographer Looks Back on the Horrors of the Bosnian War: Ron Haviv - Vice Article