Dryland
The present humanitarian crisis in East Africa leaves many individuals displaced by the severe impact of climate change. Photographer Felicity McCabe visited Somaliland to document the ephemeral existence of the refugees and the distinctive architecture of their camps.
Photography Felicity McCabeAyan at the IDP Camp, Gargara
Made in Somaliland, an autonomous region of Somalia, this series of images is a response to the current humanitarian crisis in East Africa. It depicts the transient lives and the vernacular architecture of the camps used by these people who have been displaced by the devastating effects of climate change.
Set against light skies similar to a seamless background, I wanted to create each image as though it were constructed in my studio, allowing only the most important information to remain.
The work was originally made with Save the Children UK as part of the action/2015 coalition and has been published across multiple media outlets. All children's names have been changed.
Shukri with Dead Goat, Gargara IDP Camp
Lambs at Bildhari
“Set against light skies similar to a seamless background, I wanted to create each image as though it were constructed in my studio, allowing only the most important information to remain.”
Aasha Stood on Plastic Chair, Bodale
Ahmed at the IDP Camp, Gargara
Construction material
Shelter IV, Gargara IDP Camp
Shelter V, Gargara IDP Camp
Hawa and Sadiiq at the IDP Camp, Gargara
About Felicity
Felicity McCabe grew up in the North West, but now lives in the South East.
From 1982 to 1992 she made mud pies and fell in ponds.
On a holiday in Ireland aged ten, she exposed her first roll of B&W 35mm - lots of horses and mist. By seventeen, Felicity had progressed to capturing sweaty ravers and stage smoke on the late 90s club scene.
From there a love affair with light and shade was born. Always seeking to create the magical from the mundane whilst refusing to be pigeonholed as either a still lifer or a portraitist. Felicity loves tall stories and quick questions, never minding whether the subject matter can move or not.
Her boundless quest for storytelling has taken her to skyscraper rooftops in Mongolia, drought-stricken deserts in east Africa and even into the White House (have a guess which president told her that her “smile lights up the room”?).
Over the years, Felicity’s work has been celebrated by D&AD, The Lucie Foundation’s International Photography Awards, and The Julia Margaret Cameron Award amongst others, and her pictures have appeared in numerous publications internationally, from the The New Yorker and The New York Times in the US, via Die Zeit, Stern and Vogue Portugal in Europe, to Wired, Creative Review and Wallpaper* in the UK.
Commercial clients have included Apple, Cadburys, The National Theatre, Save the Children, Stella Artois, Volkswagen and Volvo, and she’s represented internationally by Wren Agency.
Her studio is to be found in Bow, east London, where she’s often accompanied by a scruffy little hound called Pablo.
To see more of her work, visit his website or follow him on Instagram
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