Boys Playing

Boys Playing, by Abdi Ibrahim

Boys Playing, by Abdi Ibrahim

Name/Title

Boys Playing

Entry/Object ID

2023.1.21

Description

Digital photograph, depicting two young boys playing leapfrog in Renton, Washington.

Photograph Details

Type of Photograph

Digital

Made/Created

Artist

Abdi Ibrahim

Date made

2019

Dimensions

Height

40 in

Width

60 in

Copyright

Copyright Holder

Abdi Ibrahim

Interpretative Labels

Label

This photograph reflects the spirit of childhood through two young boys playing leapfrog in Renton, Washington Ibrahim is based in Los Angeles. He is the son of refugee parents from Somalia and he grew up in Seattle.

Label

Based in Los Angeles, Ibrahim shoots predominantly Black and Brown subjects, presenting them “in their most natural states.” He is concerned with creating images that tell a story, describing his work as a cross between documentary and conceptual photography, with a surreal aesthetic that is still meant to be rooted in reality. Ibrahim’s work has been featured in various publications, including the New Yorker, Vanity Fair, I-D Magazine, and Complex.

Label

There's something beautiful about the mundanities of life. The small moments we don't see as significant or important. The silent moments that aren't meant to be memorable but end up being the key points we remember when we lose the people we love or we are far away from them. I think there is beauty in these spaces. Capturing people in their most vulnerable, bored, and candid moments is where we see the most humanity. It's not always pretty, polished, or perfect. Majority of my work is focused on the imperfections of humans. I explore the themes of family, love, and mortality through my photographs. They are meant to be time capsules of small insignificant moments. Through the stills, those small beautiful glimpses of reality can live on.