‘I wanted hairstyles that would complement the extravagant surf vibe’

Last year, visual artist Fede Kortez travelled to the west of Ghana to direct a documentary on surfers. His base was Busua Beach, well known for attracting the worldwide surfing community to its swells. Kortez took a day out of the documentary schedule for the shoot, the idea for which he had been ruminating on for more than a year.
“I wanted to take some boys with their boards and style them up with vibrant hairstyles and cool accessories, with the beach in the background,” he says.
The men pictured are young Ghanians Kofi Dallas, left, and Bruce Adabie, right, fellow young creatives and surfers. The trio were joined by Afro Ele, a hair artist from Benin, with whom Kortez had worked on projects before.
“I wanted hairstyles that would complement the extravagant surf vibe I had in mind. She came and did magic on the boys’ hair,” he says.
Kortez hails from Italy, but describes himself as “shaped” by South Africa. He says: “I have spent many more years of my life there than in my country of origin. It’s where I became the person I am today, and where I acquired my creative skills. The documentary, and this photograph, were my chance to kill the stereotype that African men don’t surf or swim. I captured exactly what I had envisaged.”