The magazine of the art-form of the photo-essay
“A free, really high quality photo-essay magazine. Fabulous!”
Stephen Fry. British actor, writer and film & documentary maker
July 2015 back issue
by Lorenzo Tugnoli
The Little Book of Kabul is a book project that depicts a portrait of Kabul through the daily activities of a number of
artists who live in the city.
The book is the result of a two-year long collaboration between photographer Lorenzo Tugnoli and writer Francesca
Recchia. It focuses on the exceptional dimension of the strive for the ordinary in a context where external narratives
and reportages often turn life into mere survival and it dives into the lives of the three main characters exploring what it
means to be an artist in Kabul and, in the process, unveiling the beauty and brutality of the city.
At the centre of the narrative are Kabul Dreams, an Indie rock band; Rahim Walizada, an interior and carpet designer;
and the Center for Contemporary Arts Afghanistan (CCAA), the oldest contemporary arts school in town. Around them
move other visual artists, musicians and poets.
We looked for people who were interested in a dialogue within and outside the country, but would not entirely rely on
external support to do art; for people who would make of the creative drive the main motivation of their daily practices.
The images for The Little Book of Kabul were taken in 2012 and 2013 in the lead up to the 2014 transition. With 2014
still looming far, concerns of what would become of the country after the scheduled drawdown of the international
forces and the national elections were already on the minds of many. Political instability, combined with the pervasive
presence of development agencies and the constant flux of aid money, fostered a widespread and dangerous
dependency mentality that left the issue of long-term sustainability open. However low on the priority list of political
agendas, cultural production has not been exempt from such dynamics.
Kabul, Afghanistan, December, 2012: Students work in the studio gallery of the Center for Contemporary Arts
Afghanistan.
Kabul, Afghanistan, March, 2013: A view of Kabul from the ruins of Darulaman Palace.
Kabul, Afghanistan, May, 2013: Young skaters practice in the garden of the Institut Français d’Afghanistan during the
Sound Central Music Festival.
Kabul, Afghanistan, December, 2012: Arifa, a student at the Center for Contemporary Arts Afghanistan, poses for one
of her colleagues’ art work.
Kabul, Afghanistan, March, 2013: Families attend a performance of the Afghanistan National Theater in the hall of the
Ministry of Information and Culture.
Kabul, Afghanistan, November, 2012: Siddique Ahmed, Kabul Dreams’ bass player, talks to Sanam Sadaat in the
studio at The Venue during a recording session of the band’s first album Plastic Words.
Kabul, Afghanistan, November, 2012: Sulyman Qardash, Kabul Dreams’ singer, stands in the recording studio at The
Venue where the band is recording their first album Plastic Words.
Kabul, Afghanistan, December, 2012: Khadija Hashmi poses for a portrait series by Sara Nabil in the studio gallery of
the Center for Contemporary Arts Afghanistan.
Kabul, Afghanistan, December, 2012: Kabul Dreams play during the shooting of the official video for their song Good
morning freedom.
Kabul, Afghanistan, March, 2013: Two actors of the Afghanistan National Theatre on stage during the rehearsals of a
play.
Kabul, Afghanistan, January, 2013: Kabul street view on a rainy winter day.
Kabul, Afghanistan, February, 2013: Two students discuss about their artworks at the Center for Contemporary Arts
Afghanistan.
Kabul, Afghanistan, April, 2013: Sulyman Qardash, the singer of Kabul Dreams, during the sound-check before the
launch of Plastic Words, the band’s first album, at the Institut Français d’Afghanistan.
Kabul, Afghanistan, March, 2013: Hamed Hassanzada paints in his bedroom-cum-studio in west Kabul.
Kabul, Afghanistan, April, 2013: Young artists Baqir Ahmadi and Shahram Rahimi attend an exhibition in the studio
gallery of the Center for Contemporary Arts Afghanistan.
Kabul, Afghanistan, February, 2013: Children climb trees in the courtyard of the center of the Mobile Mini Circus for
Children.
Kabul, Afghanistan, May, 2013: Young men cheer during a performance of the heavy metal band District Unknown at
the Institut Français d’Afghanistan during the Sound Central Music Festival.
Kabul, Afghanistan, March, 2013: An actress runs through the ruins of Darulaman Palace during the recording of a
music video filmed by Jump Cut, a collective of young independent film-makers.
