Plain braid and French, gretchenzopf, with braided crown, tied from below or with four strands: There are many ways to braid hair. However, they are all boring compared to the hair sculptures that Medina Dugger shows in her photo series "Chroma". On the back of a woman's head 13 hair columns wind to a work of art made of hair and pink threads, another wears her hair shaped into small balls. "Chroma" trains exceptional hair and celebrates the diverse hairstyle fashion of Nigerian women.
Dugger is originally from Texas but has been living in Lagos since 2011. Through an artist friend, she learned of the work of the Nigerian Johnson Donatus' Okhai Ojeikere - and was immediately enthusiastic. The photographer, who died in 2014, documented thousands of African women's hairstyles over a 40-year period. His "Hairstyles" are an incredible collection of hairstyles with different African weaving techniques, recorded on around a thousand black and white photos. Created on the street, at weddings, at work or at home with the portrayed.
Dugger was enthusiastic about Ojeikeres work and decided to start his own series, a modern and colorful version. Her pictures are in contrast to the original pop. They almost light up. Not only the backgrounds in her pictures are colorful, also the clothes of the women, their accessories, the hair extensions or pearls are colored. Everything together creates a contrast that perfectly sets the hair in scene.
For her recordings Dugger collaborates with a Nigerian hair artist for her recordings; her models are women living in Lagos. The photographer emphasizes that her pictures are not just an American view of black hair traditions. It is important to her to work with the local people on the pictures. The recordings are made in teamwork. Before each shoot Dugger shows the women in advance different styles. The models then decide for themselves how they would like to wear their hair.
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Towers, Spheres and Spines: They have beautiful hairSome of the hairstyles Dugger has copied from Ojeikeres photo archive, others are own creations or ideas of her hairstylist. It takes up to six hours to dress and braid, depending on how complex the hairstyle is. With less elaborate variants sometimes enough already two hours of manual labor. As a tool and hair accessories she uses colorful yarn, pearls and shells from Balogun Market in Lagos. The clothes are from local designers.
Some of the hairstyles are uncomfortable to wear, says Dugger: "Usually they are firmer in the first few days, when the hair grows, it relaxes and it feels better." Sometimes the braids only last a few days, sometimes they stay braided for several weeks.
With her photos Dugger wants to pay homage not only Ojeikere and the craft. She also wants to remember where these hairstyles come from. African hair-dye methods go back millennia, they are part of the culture and history of the continent. Some have their origins in certain tribal regions, others are only worn on special occasions, according to Dugger. They symbolize important life events, social status, marital status and customs.
During the colonization, wigs and straightened hair became fashionable, but after the independence of Nigeria in 1960, the old traditions revived. Today, Nigeria's hair art is passed down from generation to generation, says Dugger. She is very popular with women again. However, some hairstyles are more popular than others and are more common. Dugger also experiments a lot with her hair. She would be glad, she says, if her photos encourage people to wear any hairstyle they like.
