Homo Sacer - People Without a Place https://journals.worldnomads.com/michaelcook/ Mon, 6 Apr 2026 17:42:53 GMT World Nomads Adventures This collection of photographs was taken on a trip to Zanzibar, the renowned spice island off the coast of Tanzania, Africa. The five pictures paint a picture of the many different faces of this haunting land, evoking the past while stridently carving out a resolute future. From historic Stone Town, a World Heritage Site, with its spidery, labyrinthine alleyways and ornately etched doorways, to its rural spice farms and azure seas, there is no one way to truly capture this culturally rich and diverse island. Michael Cook is a self-taught photographer from Sydney, Australia. Michael has honed his craft across nine African nations, continental Europe and Malaysian Borneo, capturing the people, landscapes and rituals that shape these very disparate locales. With a keen eye for the subtleties of a place, Michael is drawn to images that at once epitomise the culture of a region and stimulate a sense of adventure. The dramatic stories that can be wrought upon a furrowed brow, and the simplicity of seizing a moment in time. Over the past five years, Michael has taken more than 10 000 images, from the inner city grime of Sydney to the surrealist starkness of the Sossusvlei, Namibia. Michael’s photo, “Spice Harvesting, Zanzibar” was named Runner Up in the Touch category for the 2010 Gap Adventure’s Sense Appeal photo competition with the Matador Network. His collection on the Twa villagers of Lake Bunyoni, Uganda, Homer Sacer, People without Place, was shortlisted in the World Nomads Travel Photography Scholarship 2010. He also received an honourable mention in the 2011 Corona Extra, From Where You’d Rather Be Photo Competition. When he’s not out on a photo taking expedition, Michael is completing a Bachelor of Psychology at the University of Wollongong. https://journals.worldnomads.com/michaelcook/photos/32049/Tanzania/My-Photo-scholarship-2011-entry Travel Tanzania michaelcook https://journals.worldnomads.com/michaelcook/photos/32049/Tanzania/My-Photo-scholarship-2011-entry#comments https://journals.worldnomads.com/michaelcook/photos/32049/Tanzania/My-Photo-scholarship-2011-entry Tue, 8 Nov 2011 10:24:00 GMT 0 The Twa peoples of Lake Bunyoni in Uganda/Rwanda, commonly referred to as pygmies, are the oldest known inhabitants of the Great Lakes Region. The Twa were made landless in the 1970s, evicted from their traditional home in the Parc National des Volcans in Rwanda in Government efforts to protect the tourist-attracting mountain gorillas. Offered nowhere else to go, no compensation and discriminated against for their pygmy ancestry, the Twa were left to beg for an existence in search of their own place. Recently they have settled literally between two countries; the borders of Uganda and Rwanda intersecting their village. They are nationless, ostracised by both governments, and seek out an impoverished living on the slopes of these internationally renowned mountains. The area the Twa inhabit reflects their place in the world. Exiled and forgotten, the Twa are beginning to fight for a land of their own. Their famous songs and dances beckon global visitors to their village and the international spotlight is slowly illuminating their previously neglected space. This sends a defiant message to their governments to acknowledge their traditional culture. They are a people who are refusing to be unseen. I purchased my first camera over three years ago, inspired by those who could so accurately portray the good and bad that constituted their world. Being drawn to foreign cultures and far-flung lands, in 2009/2010 I embarked on my first solo adventure overseas to travel Africa. I am a University student and amateur photographer, self-taught from poring over endless textbooks. My greatest hope in entering this competition is to challenge myself to think harder about my photography. To be more deliberate in what I attempt to capture. https://journals.worldnomads.com/michaelcook/photos/26009/Uganda/My-Photo-scholarship-2010-entry Travel Uganda michaelcook https://journals.worldnomads.com/michaelcook/photos/26009/Uganda/My-Photo-scholarship-2010-entry#comments https://journals.worldnomads.com/michaelcook/photos/26009/Uganda/My-Photo-scholarship-2010-entry Sun, 17 Oct 2010 19:20:00 GMT 0