STATE OF EMERGENCY
HARAKATI ZA MAU MAU KWA HAKI, USAWA NA ARDHI YETU
Self-published by Max Pinckers, 2024
Flexible hardcover, 30 x 24 cm, 448 pages
Swahili and English
Text contributions by Hans Theys, Rose Miyonga, Julius Kimari,
Wangui Kimari and Suhayl Omar
Design by Rudy Latoir, Hans Theys and Max Pinckers
Research and Production by Victoria Gonzalez-Figueras
Printed by Cultura (Graphius), Belgium
ISBN 9789082465563
€40 + shipping
(signed copies available)
State of Emergency - Harakati za Mau Mau kwa Haki, Usawa na Ardhi Yetu is a documentary project in collaboration with Mau Mau war veterans and Kenyans who survived colonial atrocities. In the form of in-person reenactments, or 'demonstrations', together they (re)visualise the fight for independence from British colonial rule in the 1950s, manifesting their past experiences in the present with a future audience in mind. With most of the colonial archives deliberately destroyed, hidden or manipulated, this project attempts to shine a light on this history’s blind spots by creating new ‘imagined records’ that fill in the missing gaps of historical archives. State of Emergency interweaves fragmentary colonial archives, photographs of architectural and symbolic remnants from the past, mass grave sites, demonstrations and the testimonies of people who experienced and survived the war themselves.
Special Mention Award for the Photo-Text Book Award at the Rencontres d'Arles Book Awards, shortlisted for the PHotoESPAÑA Best Photograph Book of the Year Award in the Investigación category, and selected as book of the year by Gerry Badger, Colin Pantall, and Viory Schellekens on photo-eye, 2024.
Reference texts & reviews:
Acts of Defiance, Max Pinckers, The Globe and Mail, 2024
Selected by Viory Schellekens, Colin Pantall and Gerry Badger as favorite book of 2024 for photo-eye
About ‘State of Emergency’, Hans Theys, State of Emergency, 2024
Max Pinckers, State of Emergency, Loring Knoblauch, Collector Daily, 2024
Photobook Review: State of Emergency by Max Pinckers et al., Camilla Marrese, PHmuseum, 2024
State of Emergency by Max Pinckers et al., Josh Lustig, FT Weekend, 2024
‘Shining a light on the blind spots’: new book seeks to provide clearer picture of Mau Mau uprising, Simon Bainbridge, The Art Newspaper, 2024
Where Is Mau Mau History Now?, Rose Miyonga, State of Emergency, 2024
Reimagining Time, Reconstructing Space: Visual Approaches to Mau Mau History In Kenya, Chao Maina & Max Pinckers, Trigger, 2020
The Weight of Photographs. About all the photo series of Max Pinckers, Hans Theys, Max Pinckers, 2021
Schuldgevoelens leiden tot niks. Gesprek met David Linx over de fotoreeks Unhistories van Max Pinckers, Hans Theys, HART, 2021
Een speculatief vat vol verhalen – Een gesprek met Max Pinckers, Jasper Delva, Metropolis M, 2022
State of Emergency - Harakati za Mau Mau kwa Haki, Usawa na Ardhi Yetu is produced with the support of the National Museums of Kenya, the Kenya National Archives, the Nyeri Museum, Karatina University, the National Mau Mau War Veterans Association of Kenya, the Kenya Human Rights Comission, The National Archives (UK), the Bristol Archives and Museums, the Archive of Modern Conflict and the Flemish government. This ongoing project started during Pinckers’ time as a doctoral researcher in arts at KASK & Conservatorium, the HOGENT and Howest school of arts, financed by the HOGENT Arts Research Fund.
Research and production assistance by Victoria Gonzalez-Figueras. Research support by David Anderson and the Museum of British Colonialism. Translations and transcriptions by Maureen Ng’ayu and Terry Wairimu. Audiovisual assistance by Wiet Lengeler and Pedro Gossler. All photographs from 2015 were created during the project The Struggle for Freedom in: "________" with Michiel Burger.Download State of Emergency Press Kit
Special Mention Award for the Photo-Text Book Award at the Rencontres d'Arles Book Awards, shortlisted for the PHotoESPAÑA Best Photograph Book of the Year Award in the Investigación category, and selected as book of the year by Gerry Badger, Colin Pantall, and Viory Schellekens on photo-eye, 2024.
Reference texts & reviews:
Acts of Defiance, Max Pinckers, The Globe and Mail, 2024
Selected by Viory Schellekens, Colin Pantall and Gerry Badger as favorite book of 2024 for photo-eye
About ‘State of Emergency’, Hans Theys, State of Emergency, 2024
Max Pinckers, State of Emergency, Loring Knoblauch, Collector Daily, 2024
Photobook Review: State of Emergency by Max Pinckers et al., Camilla Marrese, PHmuseum, 2024
State of Emergency by Max Pinckers et al., Josh Lustig, FT Weekend, 2024
‘Shining a light on the blind spots’: new book seeks to provide clearer picture of Mau Mau uprising, Simon Bainbridge, The Art Newspaper, 2024
Where Is Mau Mau History Now?, Rose Miyonga, State of Emergency, 2024
Reimagining Time, Reconstructing Space: Visual Approaches to Mau Mau History In Kenya, Chao Maina & Max Pinckers, Trigger, 2020
The Weight of Photographs. About all the photo series of Max Pinckers, Hans Theys, Max Pinckers, 2021
Schuldgevoelens leiden tot niks. Gesprek met David Linx over de fotoreeks Unhistories van Max Pinckers, Hans Theys, HART, 2021
Een speculatief vat vol verhalen – Een gesprek met Max Pinckers, Jasper Delva, Metropolis M, 2022
State of Emergency - Harakati za Mau Mau kwa Haki, Usawa na Ardhi Yetu is produced with the support of the National Museums of Kenya, the Kenya National Archives, the Nyeri Museum, Karatina University, the National Mau Mau War Veterans Association of Kenya, the Kenya Human Rights Comission, The National Archives (UK), the Bristol Archives and Museums, the Archive of Modern Conflict and the Flemish government. This ongoing project started during Pinckers’ time as a doctoral researcher in arts at KASK & Conservatorium, the HOGENT and Howest school of arts, financed by the HOGENT Arts Research Fund.
Research and production assistance by Victoria Gonzalez-Figueras. Research support by David Anderson and the Museum of British Colonialism. Translations and transcriptions by Maureen Ng’ayu and Terry Wairimu. Audiovisual assistance by Wiet Lengeler and Pedro Gossler. All photographs from 2015 were created during the project The Struggle for Freedom in: "________" with Michiel Burger.Download State of Emergency Press Kit