James Barnor

This fully illustrated retrospective traces the six-decade career of London-based Ghanaian photographer James Barnor (born 1929), from London to Accra and back again. Barnor has spent his career shifting seamlessly, not only between continents but also between genres, from studio portraiture to photojournalism to social documentation.

With a particular focus on the decades between 1950 and 1980, the included selections are drawn from Barnor’s extensive but little-seen archive. Though the scope of his career is vast, a constant remains in Barnor’s palpable connection to his subjects, whom he always captures with a keen and tender eye, imbuing his work with a feeling of familiarity. The book includes a new conversation between the artist and Hans Ulrich Obrist, along with a series of commissioned texts by artists and curators.