Jean-Dominique Burton. Vaudou / Voodoo / Vudù

Jean-Dominique Burton

After roaming the roads of Asia for thirty years, the Belgian photographer Jean-Dominique Burton set out taking portraits of the great kings of Burkina Faso thus discovering West Africa. It was in this context that he also came to learn about Voodoo culture. He discovered a fascinating world full of rituals and legends, frequently symbolized by abstract shrines—a subtle mix of sculpture, painting and installations worthy of the most prestigious contemporary art galleries.
The work of Jean-Dominique Burton presented in this book is, first and foremost, a series of encounters and exchanges. It does not claim to be an exhaustive survey of Voodoo and even less an ethnological study. The voudounons (initiates of Voodoo) from Benin wanted these photographs to come into being. Exactly what their reasons were remains a mystery. They wished to communicate beyond the circle of the initiates through the most contemporary form of representational art, knowing that these pictures would reach out beyond their world. Without betraying initiation secrets, they agreed to unveil forms and places and to lend their own faces to an artist who uses portraits to venture far beyond the surface of appearances.
These photographs delicately lift the veil of this ancient and powerful form of spirituality and humbly show what is hidden behind it in all its grandeur and mystery.

Jean-Dominique Burton (b. Belgium, 1952) has held numerous exhibitions over the past twenty years in Belgium and abroad. His various assignments have taken him from the Atlas Mountains to the Himalyas. His most recent publication is Naabas: Traditional Chiefs of Burkina Faso.