In 2001 photographer Stephen Dupont traveled to Bucharest, Romania to document the stray dogs, around 300,000 that inhabited the city. Of pressing concern was the decision by the recently appointed mayor at the time, Traian Basescu, to allocate 17.5 million dollars for the round up and extermination of the animals. Furious animal rights groups, spearheaded by former French actress Brigitte Bardot, in turn, declared war on the mayor. Bardot flew to Bucharest, where the two in a public rapprochement signed an agreement to temporarily hold off on the killing.... In the meantime teams of city dogcatchers began roving the city with mobile sterilization vans, and removing the dogs to the city’s four major detention centres. Members of ‘Vier Pfton’, an animal rights group based out of Vienna, worked against the clock to find owners for the strays. A chemical compound to be used for lethal injections had already arrived in the country. In 2012 Bucharest still has its stray dog population but numbers have dramatically reduced...

Multimedia slide created and edited by Anna Maria Antoinette D'Addario 2012 Music Lume, Lume, Soro Lume - Nabila Doina - Slava Kazykin Ensemble Superata Sint Pe Lume- Gabi Lunca

Havana Particular by Stephen Dupont

'I travelled to Cuba in May 2001 to spend four weeks in Havana. My aim was to walk the streets and take photographs, shoot freely without the pressures of an assignment. Cuba interested me for as long as I’ve been a photographer. The culture and the music certainly intrigued me, but I was mostly seduced by its red rebel past. A land of mystique caught between Communist Russia and 50’s capitalist America. The rise in Tourism is changing Cuba dramatically. Cubans adore Cuba but struggle with poverty, and an identity crisis is clearly visible in much of the cities people. I wanted to show this and the personality of Havana in my photographs. What I had seen in photography in Cuba was mostly colour, rich Caribbean flavours and soft light. I mostly shoot B+W photography and I wanted my work on Havana to be shown in this way, with an open candid approach to taking photographs that I’d been working on for many years but was only starting to feel excited about and enjoying since January. Havana certainly brought ‘Passion’ to my vision. I arrived with very few preconceptions and ideas, which is difficult in a place that has become so heavily photographed. I wanted to be free of commitment to anyone but myself. I wanted to concentrate on the people that came across my frame. My best work has always been personal projects with no time restrictions. I feel at my happiest when I walk the streets, without any defined goal other than to photograph moments that happen along my journeys. Havana has a visual energy unlike any place I’ve been to. It is totally unique and the people are the most friendly and vibrant I’ve ever had the pleasure to meet. It’s poor, dirty, hot and sexy. The old Cuba is disappearing and I wanted to capture some of this before it dies forever. My photographs are taken all over Havana. I would walk from early morning to late into the night, to capture the exposed beauty that is right in your face constantly and just let the rhythm of the streets guide me until exhaustion forced me to stop.' - 

Slide created and edited by Anna Maria Antoinette D'Addario Music 'Bongo Samba' Chaino Photography by Stephen Dupont 2001

From the Archive - Paris '97 Stephen Dupont

Grappling with Stephen's extensive archive over this year and a bit, gave us the idea to dig into the vault and highlight some of the work that he has done in the past years; work that is not currently featured on his site and that has been hidden away for some time. The first collection of photos we've extracted and selected are from the Parisian runways in '97. Steve at the time was commissioned by 'Le Monde' newspaper in Paris to document the collections everyday for the paper; given by them unlimited access to cover the shows in his own style of Reportage. What surfaced from this shows elements of a Lisette Model or Dorothy Arbus world... freaks... Model androids, fashionistas at their best... the weird eccentricities and superficialities of the fashion world come to show in Dupont's shots. Steve mentioned it was one of the most stressful assignments he'd ever done at the time... "The experience was quite unpleasant at times, facing the daily grind dealing with arseholes basically, so much pretension and egos flying around. At the same time I was challenged and loved the moments constantly gracing my viewfinder... It was a total freak show actually... I was possessed as well by the unbelievable sexuality and beauty everywhere, the supermodels who are like beautiful and flawless androids. The weeks I spent shooting were crazy, working days and nights and parties, lots and lots of parties..."

Paris '97 by Stephen Dupont, Multimedia created and edited by Anna Maria Antoinette D'Addario