Sand Country

Photographer

Jidai Matsumoto

Category

Fine Art Photography - Travel

Company

Mauritania

Submission Group

Professional

Year

2025

Country / Region:

Japan

February 2025. I spent a month traveling around the western coast of the Sahara Desert. Through the window of beat up van, I saw many houses and mosques half buried in the sand, appearing and disappearing in the passing landscape. Life in the desert isn’t for the faint hearted. On one windy day, I walked through the desert alone towards the sea. It must have taken about 4 hours. I didn’t cross paths with anyone on my way. Nearby there was only sand, and wind. When on my way back I noticed that my footprints had almost entirely disappeared, returning to the original wave pattern, I decided to make ‘sand’ the focus of this project. I thought that by focusing on the overwhelming presence of sand rather than people, I would better portray the lives of the people living with the Sahara Desert. ※All pictures taken in Mauritania and Western Sahara 2025.

Credits

Photographer
Jidai Matsumoto
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