4 minute read
Giles Duley
Finding food for thought
Conflict photojournalist Giles Duley reveals how losing three limbs to a landmine helped him discover a new passion: telling stories of war through food
Words MIKE GIBSON Photography ALICE DENNY
Giles Duley’s story is one of reinvention. Accomplished with a camera from an early age, the south Londoner spent his twenties in the ’90s capturing the zeitgeist of the Britpop era, shooting bands such as Oasis, Pulp and The Charlatans for the publications of the day. Then he hung up his camera. But, in 2000, a powerful calling took Duley’s career down a new path: he became a documentary photographer in the world’s most dangerous warzones.
Duley’s change of focus earned him critical acclaim. But then, while on foot patrol in Afghanistan in 2011, he stepped on an IED (improvised explosive device) and lost both legs and an arm. His life had changed for ever. Now he had to rebuild himself and his career from the ground up.
The thing that kept Duley going throughout the recovery process was a lifelong passion for cooking, which, in 2017, he began to share – beautifully photographed, of course – on an Instagram page under the moniker The One Armed Chef. A forthcoming documentary commissioned by Vice sees The One Armed Chef head into some of the world’s most war-torn areas to join people at their dinner table, cook local food, and listen to stories of their lives. Here, Duley shares why his two passions are driven by the same desire: to connect with the world’s unheard stories. the people in my photographs are incredibly moving and powerful, but that’s only one part: you don’t see us drinking and laughing and dancing as we’re making them. In the show, as well as the powerful stuff, you see people enjoying and celebrating life.
Where does the show visit?
We go to Congo, to the front lines in Ukraine, to Beirut, and it’s basically me sitting down with people and chatting over food. Too many documentaries feel like you’re being slapped in the face with the misery of the world. I’ve dedicated my life to telling these stories, but what I also find in them is an incredible joie de vivre. It shouldn’t always be this bleak thing – you need to be able to relate to these people. I think those who have lost everything celebrate life more than anyone.
On TV, food is often portrayed as aspirational. How do you view it?
I remember sitting in a refugee camp in Uganda and watching a woman counting beans, rationing how many the family would have that day, and yet she was trading some for a local kind of anchovy because she wanted to add flavour. When there are UN handouts, it’s always basic – survival food – but when I find people living in those situations, they always try to make it an experience. To prepare a meal, and to make every element as good as it can be, is a way to keep your dignity and elevate yourself.
Do you feel inspirational?
I’ve been asked to present shows, but always about disability. What was great about [my show] is that I happen to be a presenter who’s got no legs and one arm, but it’s actually my life, and you’ll see that I’m having a really great time. What I really hope is that people see it and say, “OK, this guy’s got his injuries, he’s got a disability he lives with, but he’s living the life I want.” That’s the perfect outcome for me. That’s the example I’d like to set. legacyofwar.com; Instagram: @one_armed_chef
the red bulletin: When did your talent for photography first come to light?
giles duley: I’m dyslexic and I struggled at school, so when I was given a camera at 18 it was like I could suddenly see. I’m very visually led, so having this device that allowed me to communicate and made me feel the world was now interested in what I was saying… that changed everything for me.
How did you become a conflict photographer?
When I picked [photography] back up in my early thirties, I remembered how I’d felt at 18. I’d been influenced by [British photojournalist] Don McCullin and the photographers of the Vietnam War era, so I set out on that path myself. I was 31 when I moved to Angola and began to tell humanitarian stories.
Some of these stories feature in your photo project Legacy of War. Tell us more about that…
We tend to look at war as single conflicts. I wanted to find the themes that cross all wars. That’s really what Legacy of War is all about: that war doesn’t end when a peace treaty is signed. Whether it be physical injury, emotional injury or displacement, it passes on at least a generation, and often more than that. War has a legacy, and all these stories are interconnected.
How did the One Armed Chef documentary come about?
I realised that food had become as much a method of communication for me as photography. When I’m shooting in a warzone, the stories of
