TITLE: Homelands

"Homelands" explores the complexities of life on the economic margins of South Africa. The images are set in Woodlane Village, a squatter camp located in the wealthy suburb of Moreleta Park in Pretoria. Other home-places home are also depicted.

Woodlane Village comprises 846 households representing around 3000 people from Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Mozambique, and provinces in South Africa. Most of the residents are political and economic refugees. The informal settlement was created by court order in 2009 after years of legal advocacy. The village is called "Plastic View" by the surrounding homeowners who describe the place as a hotbed of crime and pestilence — and oppose integration and community-building efforts.

The village is a crucible for the tensions South Africa is experiencing around land, migration, housing, the entrenchment of an economic form of segregation, and the context of social upheaval and violence. Although, the photographs are situated in the settlement and in the townships surrounding Pretoria, they reveal more of a psychological and emotional landscape than they do a physical one. They speak of love and loss, of adaptation and resilience, and of the yearning to live in community with others despite the forces pulling us apart.

This series is part of long-term documentary and narrative project (2011 to 2017) that consists of photos along with an unpublished memoir that captures the interlocking stories of four men who live in this community and myself as we inquire into the concepts of "home" and "belonging" and our common connection to our homeland.

AUTHOR: Pieter de Vos (Canada)

Pieter de Vos is a documentary photographer, facilitator, and engaged academic. He has a PhD in Anthropology from the University of Alberta. His research focuses on using narrative and visual methods to explore community understandings of home and belonging. He has recently started venturing into the world of human-centred design, which resonates with his commitment to honouring the stories people live by.

Over the past several years, Pieter has enriched his practice by using participatory photography, digital storytelling, and arts-based methods to expand the possibilities for collaboration and dialogue. He has facilitated workshops using these methods in South Africa, Kenya, Sweden, Tanzania, Pakistan, Haiti, and the USA. These community-based projects have animated the dialogue on poverty and homelessness, HIV/AIDS, childhood injury, and gender relations.