‘The Circle’
Fazal Sheikh
Steidl
English
Hardcover, clothbound
114 pages
170 x 215 mm
2008
9783865215994
Through his earlier projects, Moksha and Ladli, Fazal Sheikh came to realize that for many women in India life is not a line, but a circle. Death is not an end but a resting place in the afterlife, from which the soul returns to earth and is reborn. A person’s place in their new life depends upon their conduct in the previous life and on the state in which they approached death. Those who lived badly will descend to a lower level. Those who led a good life will rise to a higher level, and eventually will achieve release into the absolute and be absorbed into the universal spirit.
The Circle reflects this cycle. It is dedicated to the women who helped Fazal Sheikh in India and to the hundreds of thousands of women with similar experiences that these portraits represent.
About the Artist
Fazal Sheikh is an artist who uses photographs to document people living in displaced and marginalized communities around the world. His principle medium is the portrait, although his work also encompasses personal narratives, found photographs, archival material, sound, and his own written texts. Sheikh was born in 1965 in New York City. He graduated from Princeton University with a B.A. in 1987 and since then has worked as a photographer documenting the lives of individuals in displaced communities across East Africa, in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Brazil, Cuba, India and Israel/Palestine.
https://www.fazalsheikh.org/
About the Publisher
Gerhard Steidl began working as a printer and designer in 1968. From political non-fiction he then expanded into literature and selected books on art and photography. Steidl publishes German literature as well as translations from French, English and Icelandic.
In 1994 Steidl launched its international photobook program. Today it includes some of the world’s most renowned photographers and artists including Joel Sternfeld, Bruce Davidson, Robert Frank, Robert Adams, Karl Lagerfeld, Lewis Baltz, Dayanita Singh, Ed Ruscha, Roni Horn and Juergen Teller, to name but a few.
Every Steidl book distinguishes itself through individual design and production values. Known for his passion for paper, printer and publisher Gerhard Steidl personally selects the paper and binding materials for each title and oversees all aspects of the production process – each Steidl book literally passes through his hands.
Over the decades Steidl at Düstere Strasse 4 in Göttingen has become one of the most respected printers in the international publishing world. Whether photography, art, fashion or literature, it is Steidl’s goal to realize the dreams and goals of artists and authors, and to create art in book form.
https://steidl.de/
Additional Resources
Website containing photos of photobook:
https://steidl.de/Books/The-Circle-0018485257.html
