Khalid Al Thani

No other photographer knows the Qatari desert quite so well as Khalid Al Thani (born 1980). The movements of its sands, the patterns of light, the behavior of its camels, falcons and oryxes, the changes in its sparse vegetation throughout the seasons—all this and more he has patiently observed and captured with his camera.
Al Thani photographs exclusively in analog, and for many years a Leica with 35mm black-and-white film has been his favorite tool. Now, he has turned to Polaroids, and this book presents the results for the first time. Al Thani’s interest is not only the subtle, painterly compositions and luminous color variations of the medium, but also its fascinating irregularities: the unpredictable streaks, blotches and distortions that make every print unique.

Since 2007, Khalid Al Thani (born 1980) has taken tens of thousands of photographs (and counting) of the Qatari desert. The effects he teases from his subjects are decidedly painterly—tone, texture and suggestion prevail over any documentary exactitude of line or form. By faithfully returning to the same motifs (the Sidra tree, the oryx, the horse), his approach resembles that of certain great painters (Cézanne with Mont Sainte-Victoire, Monet with his water lilies, Morandi with his bottles and jars) who revisited the same beloved subjects over years and decades.
Malamh, meaning "details" or "features," is comprised of one volume of Al Thani’s color work, and another of his black-and-white work. The image sequence in each book begins with a sunrise, takes us through the changing moods of day and ends with a starry night—a lyrical cycle that Al Thani reinvents each time he visits the desert.