There’s no doubting the humble drone has come a long way, and as the technology advances so do the ways in which we make use of its potential.

Awesome surf videos (HERE and HERE), dronies (they’re a thing, HERE you go), the creative juices are well and truly flowing.

That being said this is a first, and it’s a sobering reminder to all that Cape Town is far from integrated in many senses of the word.

A chap called Johnny Miller (his website HERE) is behind these aerial shots of the Mother City, and he sat down with News24 to talk about how and why he came up with the concept.

Below are some excerpts from the interview:

Why did you start this photo series on inequality? 

I started this series on inequality one day after I had a conversation with my friend. He mentioned that the drone footage I had been collecting around Cape Town offered him a new perspective on places that he had always taken for granted…

That got me thinking, “Hmm….I wonder if I can use my drone to show a new perspective on inequality in South Africa?”

In Cape Town, this is represented by wetlands, roads, train tracks, rivers, etc. In many cases, (and this is borne out by South African Census data from 2011) these architectures are still in place i.e. blacks, whites, and coloured people are, by and large, living separated from one another…

What have been some of the responses to this series, good and bad?

The responses I have got have been at times very encouraging, and at times quite hurtful. I understand that to put your work in a public forum is to invite criticism…so that is something that I am going to have to learn to deal with. There are a few comments that inevitably crop up on the photos:

These types of inequalities exist all over the world. Why don’t you show somewhere besides Cape Town (or South Africa)?

My response is: You’re absolutely right. Inequality, shocking disparities of wealth, exist all over the world. I have never said anything differently, nor have I purposefully ignored that fact.

However, there are two main reasons why I choose to focus on Cape Town. One, of course, is that it’s my home. I started the project, as many people do, close to where I live and what I know, which is Cape Town. Two, is that while inequality does exist in other parts of the world, the legacy of apartheid, and specifically the architecture of separation, provides a very unique context in which to view this particular form of inequality. Not only that, but the extreme inequalities are usually not present in other parts of the world.

I hope that this conversation, similar to the Rhodes Must Fall conversation of last year, contributes to an opening of dialogue and reflexivity on the part of the privileged. This will eventually begin to change the currently untenable status quo into something more just and equal for all.

Let’s see some of his finest work:

Masiphumelele – Lake Michelle (Noordhoek)

Hout Bay – Imizamo Yethu

Vukuzenzele – Sweet Home

Manenberg – Phola Park

Strand: Nomzamo

Pretty jarring, right?

Remember these images the next time someone at the braai says that we’re all provided with the same opportunities.

[source:news24]

[imagesource:here]