24

introduction

Six years ago, Dazed created an entire issue celebrating ten years of freedom in South Africa. This year, ahead of the World Cup, we decided to revisit the country and see how things had changed. What we found was an emerging generation too young to really remember the injustices of apartheid, and who are now creating a truly South African youth identity – whether it be the colourful street scene of Soweto, Coachella-conquering rap-rave provocateurs Die Antwoord, or the Afrikaans-language punk scene that reinvigorated what was, until a few years ago, a culture many were predicting would soon die out completely. As most are aware, the country suffers from some serious social problems, including a huge incidence of HIV/Aids infection, scarily high crime rate, and tense race relations. But as much of the western media issues predictions of doom, we wanted to show the side of the country we experienced – welcoming, energetic and creative, with young people from the townships to the suburbs questioning their history, challenging old stereotypes, and forging new identities at this key moment in their country’s future. Rod Stanley, Editor

DAZED

contributors

Collier Schorr

Photographer

“The idea was to shoot young people from around the world who find themselves in New York City,” says photographer Collier Schorr on the subjects of her shoot for this month’s Dazed. Her photographs consistently explore ideas of youth and gender: “Youth in general is androgynous,” she says. “It is a perfectly unfinished state where everything is still new. We wanted to show a scrapbook of youth that touches on nostalgia and the fragility of personal expression. We shot the story in my studio in Brooklyn, on the roof, and in a loft on the Bowery.”

ri Marcopoulos

Photographer

Chenai Takundwa

Writer ella howard Photographer

Photographer, film artist and adventurist Ari Marcopoulos, who began his career in New York City assisting Andy Warhol, transplants himself into the intimate lives of people living on the edge. For this issue he shot cover stars Crystal Castles. “I photographed them in Toronto in a place that Ethan temporarily rents, since he is on the road so much,” he says. “I never go in with preset ideas, I just hang out and take photos. I saw them play in New York, doing their new material. I think they’re hardcore futuristic. I cannot wait to get my hands on the new album.”

16-year-old Chenai is an art student at Thomas Tallis School who hails from Zimbabwe and has been living in London for a year, where she also works as photo editor and journalist at Brixton youth title Live Magazine. For this issue, she interviews the promoter for 2010’s Underage Festival. “I’m looking forward to King Charles, who I’ve only recently got into,” she says. “I’m not sure exactly what I want to be when I ‘grow up’ but then who really does at 16? What I am sure about, though, is my passion for music, writing and art.”

Based in London, Howard has shot for Dazed, Nylon, Vogue Nippon and Jalouse, among others. She is one half of DJ duo Grotbags, and regularly updates her blog bybellazine.blogspot.com. Howard shot new designer Matthew Harding’s white dress in black and white, then coloured in the spring-like scenery with crayon. “I also shot this month’s Incoming pages on Polaroids, which I have been experimenting with recently,” she says. “It was great to be able to mess about with such an instant medium.”