Researcher Juan Francisco Diaz Cuyás was invited to give a lecture on Ethnographic Photography on 7 February 2023. The event was organised by the Visual Anthropology Laboratory of Delhi University (DU) and was chaired by Dr. Avitoli G. Zhimo.
Juan Francisco gave a presentation on ethnographic photography and the place it has occupied in anthropology from its inception to the present day as a research tool. He pointed out the importance of critically understanding photographs as symbols, and the limitations we face in interpreting them. He also explained why photographic language is not universal and how an ethnographic photography project is not in all cases anthropological. He ended by showing different examples of ethnographic photographic works in order to generate a debate on the ethics and status of photographs, as well as the processes of commodification to which they are exposed.
From the project, and especially from the researcher Juan Francisco, we would like to thank the Visual Anthropology Laboratory of Delhi University for making this seminar possible, and for the pleasant and excellent reception of Dr. Avitoli G. Zhimo.