Myanmar Through an Ethical Lens
Focus on the People, Not the Politics
“Hla de, hla de (beautiful, beautiful),” purrs photographer Nathan Horton. One of his Nikon lenses is focused on the ebony irises of a caramel-skinned woman from the Pa-Oh hill tribe in Shan State, Myanmar. Another protrudes from his hip, dangling from a second camera body like a bonus appendage.
The villager is shy, hesitant to engage with the camera. “I’ve grown old,” she demurs, remembering the British-born photographer from a previous visit. But Horton turns his once imposing lens into a bridge. With a little more encouragement in her native tongue, his subject’s eyes light up and thanaka-smeared cheeks crinkle into a smile, revealing stained teeth that have likely never seen a dentist.
Like many Burmese, the woman has indulged in the pastime of chewing betel, a blend of areca nuts and tobacco, guaranteed to yield vampire-red choppers. Her face is adorned with Myanmar’s signature thanaka, a yellow paste…
Categories: The Expeditioner