Chad

In the Sahel desert of Chad, the nomadic Wodaabe people spend much of the year on the move, tracing shifting pastures and the fragile rhythms of the land. Life is scattered across great distances - until the rains return. When they do, the clans gather for The Gerewol, an annual courtship ceremony and beauty contest where it is the men who take center stage.

Terri Gold, an accomplished photographer, captures this ritual with a quiet, observant eye. Her work not only documents the festival but also seeks a poetic understanding of the intersections between continuity and transformation. Gold’s images reveal the Wodaabe's vibrant culture through expressive layers - men in feathered headdresses, face paint, and technicolor dreamcoats as they perform an intricate dance toward courtship. For the Wodaabe, beauty is not vanity but dignity - a spiritual act that reflects their deep cultural values.

Throughout the night, the dancers enter a trance-like state, encouraged to widen their eyes, smile broadly, and chant with increasing intensity. The goal is to catch the attention of the young women, who act as judges. Their selection is subtle - just a gentle gesture toward the man they choose. The consequences of this moment may range from fleeting romances to lifelong partnerships that shape family lines.

Gold’s photographs convey this powerful moment of endurance, beauty, and ritual, capturing not only the outward performance but the inner cultural significance of the event. Each man in the dance becomes both artist and art, a living canvas shaped by heritage, lineage, and desert light. Beauty, in this context, becomes endurance, and performance evolves into a living act of tradition.

Gold’s work is part of her larger project Still Points in a Turning World, which explores communities at the crossroads of tradition and rapid change. Using both infrared and color photography, she captures not just a documentation of the past but a meditation on the traditions at risk as modernity encroaches.

Gold’s images raise important questions: What cultural elements will be lost? Which will be carried forward or transformed? Her work from Chad prompts reflection on the role of ritual in preserving cultural identity. Gold’s work has been featured in BBC Picture Desk, The Huffington Post, and Feature Shoot, and has earned her numerous awards. Yet she remains grounded, happiest with “a camera or three in her hands,” capturing moments where beauty, ceremony, and community intersect.