Dubai: “Quaranteen” documents containment around the world

30 cameras for 30 teenagers from around the world 

The genesis of the project gravitated around a thought: “I remember seeing an initiative called “Together at Home”, where celebrities invited you to their homes for their private concerts. I thought that was an incredible idea. It meant that the whole world was coming together and we were all united” she said. And that’s how her project started… 

The idea of this South African photographer is very innovative: send 30 disposable cameras to 30 teenagers around the world and ask them, through photos, to tell and document their experience during these few months like no other… 

The objective of this extraordinary project? To show how the time of confinement unfolded through the eyes of young adults from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Belarus, Afghanistan, Latvia, South Africa, India, the United States, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and many other countries… 

“I wanted this project to be as raw as possible and capture the simplicity of what people see every day” said the photographer. 

And already 300 to 400 images received so far

“I didn’t really know what to expect” …

And yet to date, the artist has already received more than 24 reels composed of 300 to 400 images! A result up to his expectations. However, not all the rolls of film have come back with properly exposed photos. “Some came back with very little effort, others were absolutely outstanding” says the photographer. 

When enough cameras came back to the photographer, she sent the films to South Africa to be developed and scanned. 

However, some of the cameras were lost due to theft, while others took a long time to be delivered due to the COVID-19 restrictions still in place in some countries… 

A project still unfinished … 

Rex is currently considering turning his project into a coffee table book. “I think it would be a great way to show the stories of these teens in a simple format” she said.