Don’t Show The Face

Adam Ferguson uses photography to talk about very deep and serious social and political issues such as war and government unrest. One thing that I noticed as a recurring theme in his work is the face that he conceals the face of his human subjects quite often.

In his work for Time Magazine addressing the demonstrations in Hong Kong earlier this year,, he conceals the faces of his subject through many different means. Masks, shadows, books, phones and hands hide the identity of those he photographs. They are anonymous, their images accompanied by short statements, their first names, and their age. 

The Bombs They Carried (2) is another series in which the subject’s faces are covered. And for good reason, as this series depicts female subjects who were assigned to carry suicide bombs, but escaped. I think that faces and facial expressions are traditionally where we look to learn about the true nature of a person, and which represents their emotions, thoughts and feelings. However these images prove that sometimes not showing the face can result in a much more powerful image.

I also feel inspired by Ferguson’s series, The Haunted, (3) and his repeated use of fabric as a backdrop. In some images, the sheet is pinned to a wall, in others, the parents of the child subject hold it out of frame. I feel that it adds a visual consistency to the work. It’s not a visual element that is unique to Ferguson’s work, but I do think he uses it effectively.

(1) Ferguson, A 2020, Faces Of Protest, photographic series, viewed 19 April 2020, <https://adamfergusonstudio.com/faces-of-protest>

(2) Ferguson, A 2017, The Bombs They Carried, photographic series, viewed 19 April 2020, <https://adamfergusonstudio.com/the-bombs-they-carried>

(3) Ferguson, A 2019, The Haunted, photographic series, viewed 19 April 2020, <https://adamfergusonstudio.com/the-haunted>