Playlist: The End of a World: Albert Kahn's Archive of the P
As they built an unsurpassed visual archive of world culture, Albert Kahn and his photographers turned their attention to widely divergent locations. This program follows the maritime odyssey of Lucien Le Saint, circa 1922, as he captured on film the daily lives of Newfoundland cod fishermen, as well as expeditions into northwestern Africa. Images from Morocco and Tunisia focus on occupying French soldiers, the prostitutes they patronized, and larger changes in those societies, while pictures taken in Dahomey (now Benin) shed light on the symbiotic relationship between Catholicism and the Vodun religion. Viewers also learn about the Colonial Exhibition of 1931, Kahn’s financial collapse, and the fate of his archive after his death in 1940. Contains brief nudity. A BBC/Musée Albert-Kahn (Département des Hauts-de-Seine—France) Co-production. (51 minutes)
In the 1920s, Newfoundland fisherman fished with hand lines and hooks. Typically, two fishermen in a dory combine with 10 other dories to fish in an area marked by the fishing schooner.
Albert Kahn chooses Lucien Le Saint to document the grueling fishing voyage of Newfoundland fisherman. Lucien had covered WWI, gaining the reputation of "intrepid" cameraman who specialized in aerial photography.
The North Sea fishermen suffered from arctic cold, puncture wounds, infections, and more. A hospital ship accompanies the fleet. In the 1920, antibiotics are not yet available. Steam engine trawlers use huge nets to catch fish.
In the French colonies of North Africa, modernity is already in progression. Tunisia boasts European buildings and transport systems. In Morocco, new cities are rising. Traditional storytellers mock local leaders who collaborate with the French.
In Morocco in the 1920s, French settlers took advantage of the local people by placing burdensome taxes on them and confiscating their lands. People flocked to the cities. Desperate women turn to prostitution.
Jews had been present in Morocco for more than 2000 years. Nearly 100,000 live there in the 1920s.
Albert Kahn's team of photographers use film stock that reproduces the true colors of nature. Colorful scenes filmed in Paris demonstrate Kahn's color techniques. His most remarkable pictures were shot in the deepest regions of France.
Albert Kahn's film team observes tuna fishermen bringing in their catch. Gypsy caravans come to the coast of France to celebrate the arrival of Mary the mother of Jesus on French shores.
In addition to recording the culture of his own country, Albert Kahn wanted to document cultural traditions practiced in far-off French colonies. Kahn's camera's had welcome access to Dahomey's elite and to Catholic missionaries..
Dahomey's past is rich with voodoo rituals. Today, voodoo is practiced in Benin (formerly Dahomey.) What Albert Kahn's films show is that, to Africans, voodoo (vodun) is a positive, celebratory religion.
Early Catholic missionaries and priests in West Africa encounter voodoo practices. To the Africans, Catholicism and its icons are an extension of voodoo. They embrace both religions. Albert Kahn's film captures animal sacrifice rituals.
In Paris, scientists and academics are invited to Albert Kahn's photographic and film collection on Africa. The Catholic Church is unhappy with the depictions of a Catholic priest giving credence to voodoo.
When Albert Kahn's photographers went to other countries, they tried to photograph people in their everyday lives without any intention of creating propaganda. At the Paris Colonial Exhibition in 1931, many native peoples are displayed as exhibits.
The impact of the market crash of 1929 in the U.S. spread to Europe, and it had a dramatic effect on the finances of Albert Kahn. He became bankrupt. He remained in his house, though his gardens and all his possessions had been sold.
In July 1940, the German army enters Paris. Albert Kahn escapes deportation and dies. In November of that year, Kahn dies at age 80. In 1970, Kahn's work is catalogued and on display. All the images are now digitized.