Canon-sponsored exhibition gears up for opening

See some of the world's most deprived slums

12 May 2008 16:06 GMT / By Verity Burns

Magnum photographer Jonas Bendiksen is gearing up for the opening of his exhibition entitled "The Places We Live", sponsored by Canon.

Set to be shown for the first time at the Nobel Peace Centre in Oslo on 6 June, the multimedia exhibition explores what it means to be a 21st century city dweller.

"The Places We Live" will offer a virtual visit to 20 homes in four of the world’s most deprived slums - Kibera in Nairobi, Dharavi in Mumbai, the hillside barrios of Caracas and poor kampongs in Jakarta.

All of the photographs for the exhibition were taken using Canon’s 12.8 Megapixel EOS-5D and will be presented using 18 of Canon’s new XEED SX7 projectors.

The projectors will beam onto canvases the four walls of each family’s one-room dwelling, while audio clips will play to give an insight into their daily lives, routines, joys, sorrows, hopes and fears.

Bendiksen is the first Norwegian photographer to become a member of the prestigious Magnum Photos agency, having been an intern at the agency’s London offices, at the age of 19.

He said: "I love working on stories that get left behind in the race for the daily headlines – journalistic orphans. Often the most worthwhile and convincing images tend to lurk within the hidden, oblique stories that fly just below the radar".

After holding the exhibition in Oslo, "The Places We Live" will tour worldwide through the prestigious Magnum Photos Network.