08 December 2011

Ethiopian woman

"I was standing in a market in Southern Ethiopia when this woman barged right up to me demanding a picture. I was not keen as all pictures in this part of the world come with a price. But she was different she just wanted to see how her newly purchased beads looked around her neck." (Ben McRae)
From a selection of photos submitted to National Geographic's annual photography contest.

12 comments:

  1. That woman is absolutely stunning.

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  2. Her lips, eyes and cheekbones are reminiscent of Nefertiti's.

    CCL

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  3. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  4. Anon @10:13: I would suspect that it is acceptable to publish photos like this woman (who IS very striking) because, to a certain extent, this is her normal attire, she's semi-nude because it is her everyday wear. On the other hand though, a semi-nude white women would not normally appear in the clothing, or lack thereof, that she appears in in the photograph outside of the world of being photographed.

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  5. I'm assuming the deleted comment was something to do with her breasts. I didn't actually notice she was bare-chested until I went back and had another look.
    Neither of our kids thought there was anything odd about it, but then being European we probably have different attitudes to the (I presume largely American) readership.

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    1. Western/Christian so called 'values' have a lot to answer for. It is tragic that people (especially Americans) have become so paranoid about something perfectly natural. I was recently blocked from Facebook for posting a well known vintage photo of a bare breasted famous female artist! A photo of Picasso half naked would have been fine, I'm sure.
      This is a terrific photo and a great story. Her beads look good but she looks absolutely noble!
      I am an artist and photographer and the prejudice I face for producing fine art nudes is unbelievable.

      Narrow minded people .... get a grip!

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  6. It was deleted not for profanity or obscenity, but for just being juvenile in content and language.

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  7. People from that region, namely Somalia, Ethiopia and parts of Kenya tend to be quite striking in appearance, and arguably some of the most attractive I have seen in my travels. There is and aloof and aristocratic quality to her demeanour.
    Thanks for sharing.

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  8. I'm Ethiopian and I agree, this woman is absolutely Beautiful.

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  9. All I can say is that I fully agree... she is stunning

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