| Two Hundred Days: ‘A Photographic Journey Through Portugal’ by Mark BenhamPortuguese American Journal

Two Hundred Days: ‘A Photographic Journey Through Portugal’ by Mark Benham

Posted on 10 October 2015.

Review by Julie Dawn Fox, Contributor (*)

I’m jealous. And inspired. In his new photography book, Two Hundred Days, Mark Benham has fulfilled a dream of mine; to compile a stunning visual tour through Portugal which captures its essence and touches the soul.

Mark’s two hundred days of photography were spread over 12 visits to different regions and cover a variety of places between Ponte da Barca in the north and Mértola in the Algarve as well as one of the Azorean islands, São Miguel. He obviously enjoyed better weather on the island than I did!

For me, the beauty of the book lies partly in its range. This is not simply a collection of tourist board style images, although the landscape shots would do Turismo de Portugal proud. Mark’s images portray the country’s natural beauty and varied lifestyles of Portuguese people.

Food stall. Medieval Festival in Óbidos.
Winner: Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year 2015, Food for Celebration category.

People and personality

Among the shots that made me smile is a group of three men at a bus stop, each wearing a very different expression. Indeed, the range of emotions within this small book is vast, from the carefree joy of a gypsy girl running with a horse to a melancholic widow in black. The horse rider in his gold-braided jacket waiting to enter the arena at the horse fair in Golegã contrasts with the images of scruffy men sleeping on benches. They are joined by market traders, kids in the street and on the beach, farmers, fisherfolk and people simply going about their business in urban and rural settings.

Cavaleira Ana Batista in Caldas da Rainha.

Portuguese countryside

Every country is diverse and in this book, Mark has managed to display many of Portugal’s different land and seascapes and the changes that take place within them. Alentejan plains scorched by the summer sun wear a cloak of color in spring when the fields are dominated by wildflowers. He takes us to fertile valleys of farmland and striped vineyards, the jungly slopes of Azorean islands, milky lagoons and on to the ocean. Rugged misty coastlines and crashing waves contrast with expanses of flat golden sand, with and without sunbathers, beach tents and surfers.

Sete Cidades. São Miguel, Açores.

Food fundamentals

From wizened market traders to blood-spattered butchers, bunches of bulbous garlic to freshly roasted chestnuts or racks of sundried fish, the importance of food is evident. You can almost smell the steamy, smoky atmosphere of some of the cooking shots, one of which has already won a prestigious award.

Freshly roasted chestnuts.

Rural industry

Mark also takes us behind the scenes and into the countryside to discover the hard work that goes into getting food to the table. Through him, we meet the women who carry bundles of grass on their heads and grape pickers at harvest time. We watch tractor drivers in action and laborers taking a well earned break. Fishing is portrayed in many forms and at different times of day.

Farmer taking a break.

Life and movement

This is not a book full of static scenes. There’s life and action in many of the images, whether that be birds in flight, fishing rods straining as a catch is reeled in, a woman cooling herself in a fountain, muscled young men diving into waves or kids playing football in the street.

Woman feeding pigeons in Tomar.

Architecture

Although there are a couple of images of some of Portugal’s finest Gothic treasures such as Batalha monastery, more space is given over to modest and abandoned buildings. Weathered doors, rooms that have been taken over by weeds, crumbling plaster and flaking paintwork are treated to skilled lighting and composition to produce evocative pictures of former glory and simple lives.

Posters on an abandoned building.

The verdict

At 17 cm square, the book is smaller than I expected it to be but in some ways, that’s a good thing. Unlike unwieldy coffee table books, this is easy to pick up and leaf through. The quality of paper and prints is good and I know I’ll enjoy this book for a long time to come.

I found myself nodding in recognition, smiling and even chuckling at some of the scenes. Whilst there are a couple of images that aren’t quite as worthy as the others, I can see why they’ve been chosen. The vast majority of pictures provoke feelings of envy, wanderlust, empathy, hunger and fondness in me.

While some themes are grouped, e.g. the market traders, there’s a real mixture of subjects throughout, which maintains the element of surprise as you turn the page. I also like the juxtaposition of certain images, especially the pairing of a woman standing on a mountaintop, arms outstretched, with a smiling scarecrow mirroring her pose on the opposite page.

Order your copy of Two Hundred Days. A Portrait of Portugal by Mark Benham from the Blurb website.

Find out more about Mark, his photography, design and other art work on his website.

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All pictures are © Mark Benham
This article originally published on Julie Dawn Fox in Portugal.Reprinted here with permission.

Disclosure by Julie Dawn Fox: I received a review copy of Two Hundred Days and payment for reviewing it. This in no way influenced my opinion of the book.

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Julie Dawn Fox is a British writer and photographer who moved to central Portugal in 2007 and swiftly fell in love with the country. She is a contributor to Dorling Kindersley Eyewitness Travel Guides to Portugal, Lisbon and Europe, the Huffington Post, CNN and AFAR, as well as the Portuguese American Journal. When she isn’t working on freelance writing assignments, she can usually be found exploring her adopted country, camera and notebook at the ready, or at her computer, researching or writing about her trips. She provides information, inspiration and tips for living and travelling in Portugal on her blog, Julie Dawn Fox in Portugal.

**Report a correction or typo to editor@portuguese-american-journal.com. We are committed to upholding our journalistic standards, including accuracy. Carolina Matos/Editor.

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