Vlad Sokhin | Mozambican Witchdoctors
"Insolite" is a French word which may not have a direct equivalent in English...but it means 'unusual' or 'weird' or even 'eerie'. Photographic essays that are worthy of being 'insolite' are pure catnip for this blog.Vlad Sokhin's Mozambican Witchdoctors is one of those. It is said that the 70,000 traditional healers in Mozambique outnumber their 1,500 professional doctor counterparts, and are often the only ones serving its remote populations. You can also view the photo essay in a superb layout on the always interesting Maptia.
Witchdoctors are not exclusive to the African continent, but can be found all over the world. In fact, in a few days I'll be traveling to Bali and I've photographed its own brand of witchdoctors (balian) who are frequently the first to be visited by the Balinese rural population, despite the proximity of medical doctors, clinics and hospitals.
A witch doctor is a type of healer who treats ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft, and is commonly used to refer to healers, particularly in third world regions, who use traditional healing rather than contemporary medicine.
Some are so popular and media-savvy that they use the internet, and have attractive websites, such as this one.
He is fluent in English, Russian and Portuguese and also speaks Spanish and Tok Pisin (Papua New Guinea). He is currently also learning French and Arabic.