Michel Ghatan

Originally curated for an IRL show at a London gallery in May 2022, this exhibition features a selection of photographs taken in Kenya and Uganda since 2020.

What sets these works apart are the truly awe-inspiring but also very fleeting moments that Michel witnessed and managed to capture with his camera.

One of these rare “wow” moments can be seen in The Terrestrial Paradise. It was the end of a very long, cloudy day…just as the sun was starting to set, a family of elephants entered the bush, and Mount Kilimanjaro, with its snow peaks, suddenly came into view. The moment was almost divine in its pure beauty and magnificence, and the resulting panoramic work is no less breathtaking.

From there, we fast forward to Michel’s first trip to the “impenetrable forests” of Mount Muhabura in the Virunga Mountains (in February 2022), where he spent four days (at an altitude of 2,800 metres) following a family of mountain gorillas that originated from Rwanda. Given their similarity to humans (they share 98.4% human DNA), photographing gorillas is a literal race against time, and one needs to seize every opportunity that nature allows. 

– Helen Ho, curator

“that perfect moment comes from somebody who has a real love for the natural world and can connect people through imagery to care enough to conserve it.”

Foreword by Camilla Rhodes, Fauna & Flora International:

Many of Africa’s most iconic species, like the African elephant or the mountain gorilla, are under threat. Traditionally, the major cause of decline has been through hunting. While this still remains a threat, other issues caused by rapid human population growth have emerged. These include habitat loss, fragmentation and the development of agricultural land, which have all led to an increase in conflict between humans and wildlife. But there is hope, as conservation efforts and advanced monitoring techniques have led to mountain gorilla populations increasing to 1,063 individuals today.

Dedicated conservation and wildlife photographers, like Michel, have the ability to raise awareness of the plight faced by endangered species and habitats through evocative images that create an emotional connection for viewers. Images from the natural world or of those people helping to protect it, can raise awareness for conservation issues and can inspire action that aids conservation. It is important that it tells the right story and provides context on why the specific species or scene is important and of concern. Secondly, wildlife photography is a major driver of the demand for conservation tourism, and as such contributes significantly to the protection of wilderness landscapes.

Photography is even a useful tool through citizen science initiatives, whereby photographers are able to contribute to conservation management by sharing their images with research programmes and online databases.

Ultimately, the patience to wait – sometimes hours on end – for that perfect moment comes from somebody who has a real love for the natural world and can connect people through imagery to care enough to conserve it.

“for the first time, it was not the animal per se that led me to a region and take photographs but the rich history of conflicts between humans and its collateral damage.”

The Virunga Mountains

War, Genocide, Virungas…

I had never heard of the Virungas until my attention turned to the butchery of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. For around 100 days, members of the Tutsi minority ethnic group and some moderate Hutu were killed by armed militias. Numbers as high as 600,000 lives were lost for the profit of war. 

Ultimately, the civil war in Rwanda resulted in more brutal conflicts spreading to DRC, leading to the First (1996-1997) and Second (1998-2003) Congo Wars. In 2007, Virunga National Park and its population of mountain gorillas became under the control of warlords.

At the present time, Rwanda and Uganda are free from conflicts, but battles continue in the DRC for control of land, minerals and oil.

Back in London…and for the first time, it was not the animal per se that led me to a region and take photographs but the rich history of conflicts between humans and it’s collateral damage.

– Michel Ghatan

The Virunga Mountains are a chain of volcanoes touching the borders of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda. Eight volcanoes with elevation as high as 15,000 feet are home to the critically endangered mountain gorillas.

In the mid-1990s, poaching gorillas became a way to survive, to profit and to live. Large numbers of Rwandan refugees fled to camps at the edge of the Virunga National Park, leading to loss of habitat for the endangered species and even more poaching.