Ethiopia Past & Present
 224pp • 240x300mm
ISBN: 978-1-908531-42-1 Price: £30.00 Publication: 13th October 2016 "This magnificent book, with pictures taken between 1969 and 2014, shows an old and splendid nation, whose glories are everyday and whose most commonplace activities seem to glitter and blaze when put beside our soft grey palette of Northern Europe."
- from the foreword by Joanna Lumley Ethiopia’s astonishing breadth of cultural diversity is like no other in Africa. To the north, Orthodox Christian communities trace their lineage back to the 4th century. The Ethiopian Jews throw the net back further, to Menelik I, son of the legendary Queen of Sheba and King Solomon. The first generation of Muhammad’s followers are reported to have made the hijra journey to the Kingdom of Aksum in Abyssinia as early as AD 613, and the medieval walled city of Harar in the east is testament to the firm footing Islam found here in Africa. Meanwhile, to the south in the valleys watered by the Omo river, a plethora of diverse tribes celebrate traditional home-grown faiths whose origins are lost in the mists of antiquity. Julie Green first went to Ethiopia in 1969. A guest of Ethiopian Airlines, she toured far and wide with her camera, her lens capturing remote tribal village and Emperor alike. It was not until recent years that she returned to photograph the nation anew. The fruits of both eras are held here in Ethiopia Past and Present, celebrating at once the ageless charm and the beauty of this land, and highlighting the enduring strength of tradition and heritage. About the Author
 Julieta Preston with lion cub, photograph Ida Kar. Julie Green
Julie Green (née Julieta Preston) was born in 1943, in Wrecclesham, Surrey, before moving with her family to a farm in Northamptonshire. Jack Gurney and the Magnum photographer Inge Morath sparked Julie’s early fascination with photography. By the age of ten, Julie already had her own darkroom. On leaving school, firmly rejecting suggestions of becoming a debutante or following a career in the Forces, Julie enrolled at the Regent Street Polytechnic. She studied photography there for 18 months, before fate intervened. In 1961, by chance, Julie’s mother shared a train carriage from Monte Carlo to London with Ida Kar. Ida was one of the most distinguished bohemian photographers of the sixties. Within a month, Julie had left her studies having been appointed as Ida’s resident assistant. Ida’s London studio was in Soho, above the avant-garde Gallery One, founded by her husband, Victor Musgrave. For Julie, working with Ida and Victor was a kaleidoscope of events and people, whilst learning photographic technique and composition. Julie’s work with Ida included collaborating on a series on zoos across Europe for Animals magazine, from which the above photograph is taken. In 1967, Dosoo Karaka, an Indian friend of her father’s from university, mentioned that Air India and the Indian Ministry of Tourism were looking for someone to take photographs of India to illustrate their advertising and brochures. A six-month commission swiftly ensued, taking Julie right across India. The success of this project led to Julie specialising in travel photography. During her career, she has worked for many airlines and travel businesses, including Air India, BOAC, American Express, Hilton Hotels, and United Arab Airlines. One of her most memorable commissions was on behalf of Ethiopia Airlines in 1969, visiting Ethiopia and photographing its sites and scenery. She vowed to return and in 2013 an opportunity arose so she jumped at the chance. This book is the result. Julie Green lives in London and on the Sussex coast. She is married to Malcolm, and has four adult children. |
Available now.
Buy your copy direct from the publishers and receive 20% discount from the cover price of £30.00, plus p&p. Ethiopia Past & PresentFrom the Foreword:
Ethiopia’s astonishing breadth of cultural diversity is like no other in Africa. To the north, Orthodox Christian communities trace their lineage back to the 4th century. The Ethiopian Jews throw the net back further, to Menelik I, son of the legendary Queen of Sheba and King Solomon. The first generation of Muhammad’s followers are reported to have made the hijra journey to the Kingdom of Aksum in Abyssinia as early as AD 613, and the medieval walled city of Harar in the east is testament to the firm footing Islam found here in Africa. Meanwhile, to the south in the valleys watered by the Omo river, a plethora of diverse tribes celebrate traditional home-grown faiths whose origins are lost in the mists of antiquity. Julie Green first went to Ethiopia in 1969. A guest of Ethiopian Airlines, she toured far and wide with her camera, her lens capturing remote tribal village and Emperor alike. It was not until recent years that she returned to photograph the nation anew. The fruits of both eras are held here in Ethiopia Past and Present, celebrating at once the ageless charm and the beauty of this land, and highlighting the enduring strength of tradition and heritage. Two kinds of people will be enchanted by this book: those who have never been to Ethiopia, whose minds will be opened now to that extraordinary country’s beauty, and those, like me, who have travelled across parts of it and realise how much we have missed. Without a good camera or enough time I wondered if I would ever recapture the people I met and the places I saw. But the day is saved: Julie Green has an artist’s eye for colour and a photojournalist’s instinct for seizing the moment, when a head turns, when the birds rush upwards, when the day is done, and to be at her shoulder as she takes these images is a huge and satisfying pleasure. It is utterly enthralling. Ethiopia reveals her ancient history and traditions, her architecture and above all her people to this sympathetic lens, which can flit like a butterfly between the solemn and sublime, the charming and the awesome. (Ethiopia makes you reach for over-used words and I select ‘awesome’ with no sense of shame.) I fell in love with that land so conclusively that I have my own photograph of the Simien Highlands as a screen saver so that I can stare every day at those bewitching mountains and valleys. This magnificent book, with pictures taken between 1969 and 2014, shows an old and splendid nation, whose glories are everyday and whose most commonplace activities seem to glitter and blaze when put beside our soft grey palette of Northern Europe. With a pleasing lack of sentimentality these pages show you the country as she was seen in black and white, and years later in full colour. Ravishing, revelatory, original, compelling ... these are all words I shall sprinkle here, so that before you start turning the pages you will be prepared for the treat that awaits you. I am booking my journey to Ethiopia as I write; I suspect that many of you will soon be doing the same. Joanna Lumley |
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