I-Chan Park Standing before the vast currents of the Congo River, one is met with the overwhelming force of nature and the unbroken narrative of life that unfolds across it, like a monumental landscape. The Wagenya fishermen do not merely endure this harsh environment; they live in harmony with it, as though they have become one with the river itself. Near Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of Congo, close to the turbulent waters of the Boyoma Falls, they have preserved their tradition for generations. Towering wooden tripods rise from the river, like ceremonial structures binding earth and water. From these tripods, the fishermen suspend large, intricately woven baskets. As fish are swept through the raging currents, they are caught within these baskets, while the fishermen wait, attuned to the river’s rhythm and breath. Yet the gaze of the photographer who witnesses this scene does not stop at mere documentation. Confronting this intersection of river, people, and ancestral wisdom, he presses the shutter in quiet reverence and silence. The camera ceases to be a tool of proof and instead becomes a medium for listening, a way of bearing witness to their lives with humility. In the earnest lives of the Wagenya fishermen, the photographer finds himself asking: What does it truly mean to coexist with nature? And how much of their breath, their pulse, can a single photograph hold? These questions flow like the river itself, and in the end, they are etched into an image that record
The Wagenya fishermen are a group of traditional fishers living near Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They operate near Boyoma Falls, known for its turbulent waters, making it an ideal spot for their fishing methods. Large wooden tripods are anchored into the rocks in the river at strategic points where the water flows rapidly. From these tripods, the fishermen suspend large woven baskets. As fish pass through the fast-flowing waters, they get trapped in these baskets. The fishermen then retrieve the baskets and harvest the catch.
