George Rodger British 1908-1995
Korongo Nuba Wrestler, Kordofan, South Sudan, 1949

£3,950

Silver print (printed 1993 by the photographer)
Signed (recto and verso) with studio stamp and print information (verso)
33cm × 23cm (image size), (50cm × 39cm framed)

George Rodger was a pioneering British photojournalist and co-founder of Magnum Photos, celebrated for his empathetic documentary work across World War II, Africa, and the Middle East. In 1947, alongside Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and David "Chim" Seymour, Rodger co-founded Magnum Photos, a revolutionary photographer-owned agency that granted artists control over their copyrights and assignments.

Rodger spent much of his post-war career documenting traditional societies, rituals, and changing cultures across Africa and the Middle East. His work prioritized dignity and avoid sensationalism, creating one of the mid-20th century’s most vital ethnographic photographic archives. He passed away in Kent, England, in 1995 at age 87.

In 1949, while undertaking an extensive 28,000-mile overland journey from Cape Town to Cairo for National Geographic, Rodger traveled into the Nuba Mountains in the Kordofan region of Sudan. There, he spent six weeks living alongside the Korongo Nuba community, becoming the first Western photojournalist granted permission to extensively document their sacred traditions and daily life.

The photograph depicts the aftermath of a ritualistic Nuba wrestling match. A victorious wrestler—his body coated in ash and clay used for ceremonial grip and protection—is carried atop the shoulders of another tribe member in triumph. First published in National Geographic (1951), later included in Edward Steichen’s landmark The Family of Man exhibition at MoMA (1955).