“An epic new book… the photographs, often in jarring juxtaposition, underscore the cruel bargain of Western ‘progress’—and the paradoxical damage brought on by a half century of conservation and preservation efforts.” —David Friend, Vanity Fair
For decades, documentary photographer Guillaume Bonn has told the stories that the world is afraid to hear, championing the silenced and refusing to turn away from the truth. Paradise Inc. is the culmination of twenty years dedicated to documenting the last days of Africa’s vast natural landscapes, where countless expeditions have taken the photographer deep across nearly every country on the continent. Far from tired stereotypes, “greenwashing” efforts, and ready-made solutions, Paradise Inc. shines an unblinking light onto the paradoxes, consequences, and truths that lurk in plain sight behind the environmental “paradise” in Africa.
Featuring an introduction by world-renowned journalist Jon Lee Anderson and foreword by founder of Across Maasai Land Initiative and Maasai elder Ezekiel Ole Katato, Paradise Inc. continues the work Bonn began as a player in the Africa State of Mind project (Thames & Hudson, 2020), now presented in its entirety.
While beautifully and poignantly illustrated, Paradise Inc. is more than a visual journey. Nostalgic and critical, it is declaration of the photographer’s love for Africa—which Jon Lee Anderson (The New Yorker) calls his “inescapable muse”—an expression of his fear that it might one day disappear, and an impassioned call to action. In this latest work, Bonn defies the clichés of a wildlife wonderland that haunt the collective imagination, instead asking uncompromising questions and inviting us to strive for sustainable solutions together.
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