ENTRY DESCRIPTION
Portrait of a Himba girl from the Kunene area, Namibia.

For a Himba woman, her hair is her power. These semi-nomadic people live in one of the most extreme environments on earth, the deserts that border Namibia with Angola. As water is scarce they use a mixture of pastes on both their bodies and hair. These pastes blend the aromatic resin of the omazumba shrub with animal fat and ground red pigmented stone. This ‘otjize’ paste gives the women’s skin and hair a distinctive red glow which symbolizes both blood, the essence of life, and the earth’s rich red color.

AUTHOR
Award-winning multi-genre photographer Israel. Although the working methods in each genre are completely different, to me, there is little difference in the end result. In each case I’m looking to be moved by the image and I hope for the viewer to recognize something of themselves in the image too.

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