Martha Bulengo, Tanzania, 1974
Richard Saunders
Here, Saunders captures Martha Bulengo, Executive Director of the Community Development Trust Fund, an organisation dedicated to working with villages in Tanzania and assisting women in rural areas.
By shooting on high contrast black and white 35mm film, Saunders elevates this photograph from a straightforward portrait to a striking graphic image, the intensity of the wax print on her traditional dress blending seamlessly with the bold drawings on the wall behind her.
As Rosalie Targonski, Topic’s Picture Editor, said of Saunders: “As a photographer he was one of the best. But he was at his best when photographing people.”