Long Story Bit by Bit – Liberia Retold

Long Story Bit by Bit – Liberia Retold
by Tim Hetherington

8 September - 24 September 2009

HOST is proud to announce the launch of Long Story Bit by Bit – Liberia Retold, by Tim Hetherington. The launch at HOST Gallery in London is accompanied by an exhibition of Hetherington’s photographs from Liberia.

Tim Hetherington’s exploration of Liberia between 2003 and 2007 brings an extraordinary range of characters to life: warlords and presidents, environmental activists and traditional
hunters, political hustlers and democratic visionaries. During the time he spent in the country, Hetherington became fascinated with the dynamics of power, from the raw power wielded by the young men of rebel groups, to the corrupt power of the transitional government, to the possibilities of a democratically elected president.

This exhibition puts faces to the names behind the news headlines, and in doing so demonstrates that what happened in Liberia was not the product of an inexplicable and random chaos.

Tim Hetherington spent eight years living and working in West Africa. In 2003 he and a TV colleague were the only journalists to report from behind rebel lines as the war closed in on the Liberian capital, Monrovia, and its leader, Charles Taylor. The resultant ﬁlm, Liberia an Uncivil War, was revalatory in its access and highly acclaimed for its view of the war.

Hetherington stayed on after the war, living in downtown Monrovia and documenting the post-war years.

About Tim Hetherington

Tim Hetherington is the recipient of a Colombia University duPont award, UK NESTA National Endowment Fellowship and four World Press Photo prizes, including the 2007 World Press
Photo of the Year. In 2006 he took a break from image making to work as an investigator for the United Nations Security Council’s Liberia Sanctions Committee – reporting directly to the Security Council about threats to Liberia’s stability. He currently lives in New York and is a contributing photographer for Vanity Fair. Gallery Events for Long Story, Bit by Bit

The exhibition opens Tuesday 8 September with a book signing and reception at HOST.

On Friday 11 September Tim Hetherington will present images and discuss the project.