EPISODE 1557: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to the South African based photographer artist Roger Ballen about the existential ecological psychodrama of the destruction of African wildlife
lRoger Ballen is known for his disquieting psychological portraits of rural inhabitants on the fringes of South African society. Ballen, who worked as a geologist and mining consultant before starting his career as a photographer, found inspiration for his work in the people he encountered as a mining prospector in the small villages of rural South Africa. Since then, his work has moved beyond observation and documentation toward abstraction and complex narratives. Often photographing at a warehouse for transients on the outskirts of Johannesburg, the photographs move beyond human subjects, and embark on an imaginative physiological journey, which blur the lines of fact or fiction. Ballen has lived and worked in Johannesburg, South Africa for more than 30 years. In 2001, Ballen’s book Outland won the Best Photographic Book of the Year at PhotoEspaña
Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.
The End of the Game: Roger Ballen on the existential ecological psychodrama of the destruction of African wildlife