Lourenco Marques Trabalhadores da Carvoeira

Work, workers, and working conditions were all prominent themes running through Ricardo Rangel's photographic archive from the colonial period. Rangel visited different mines and building projects in Mozambique to photograph workers. He also photographed mine workers in Lourenço Marques before they headed to South Africa. In colonial Mozambique, there was "chibalo," forced labor. All persons considered "indigena," black, were required to work and give a portion of their small salaries to government. This form of labor was used to build Mozambique's infrastructure and to grow cotton. In this photograph, taken at a factory along the railway line just outside of the city limits (in fact in the right corner of the background you can see the city's skyline), Rangel pictured the workers during a break. The viewer cannot but help notice the conditions under which they worked, many were barefooted, shirtless, and some in tattered full-body uniforms. The brute force necessary to operate machinery in these settings was on clear display.