Maurice Pellosh

Maurice Bidilou, also known as Pellosh, was a Congolese photographer (15 August 1951 — 25 Mai 2023). He produced small and medium format photographs capturing the Congolese society in the early 1970s to mid 1990s. In 2016, he closed his studio. He gained newfound recognition in 2021 after a series of solo shows.

Early years
Maurice Pellosh was born into a family of farmers in the southern rural area of Bouansa (Congo-Brazzaville). In middle school, he chose the nickname "Pellosh" after the word "pelloche", the slang equivalent to film.

Maurice Pellosh moved to Pointe-Noire at the age of seventeen with his brother. After working a few odd jobs to sustain himself, he decided to pursue photography studies with the support of his uncle. In 1971, he started an apprenticeship at Studio Janot Père in exchange for a demijohn of wine, a chicken, a bunch of bananas, and 20,000 CFA francs. He spent twenty months studying and practicing the principles of light, shadows and nuances.

Photographic career
Officially a trained photographer in 1973, he ordered his first camera from France: a 6x6 Yashica mat-124 G. He wrorked as a wandering photographer in the Mayombé area, capturing rural life.

He opened his studio, Studio Pellosh, in Pointe-Noire on December 17, 1973. The studio was located in the Rex area close to the Central Market and Grand mosque. The Sape culture was booming at the time. Studio Pellosh soon gained in popularity and became a place where families, friends, and sapeurs came for a sit in, dressed in their best attire. Portraiture became a symbol of pride and emancipation in Congo-Brazzaville after the country gained its independence. In the evenings, Pellosh continued to cruise bars, ballrooms and concert halls to capture nightlife scenes.

From the 1980s, analog films become rare in Congo-Brazzaville. Maurice Pellosh moved away from black and white photography to color. The civil war in the late 1990s and the rise of digital photography in the 2000s saw a declining interest in studio photography, and Maurice Pellosh finally closed his studio in 2016.

Over the span of 40 years, Maurice Pellosh captured thousands of portraits and scenes of a vibrant Congolese society.

Late recognition and legacy
In 2019, Maurice Pellosh met curator Emmanuelle Béthery in Pointe Noire through a mutual friend. She was immediately captivated by the yellowed photographs he presented to her, recognising the poignant testimony of a joyful past era. Soon after, she visites Maurice in his home equipped with a lightbox. Together they began sorting the thousands of 6x6 negatives kept in Kodak boxes, decaying from damp and humidity. The photographs revealed faces young and old, portraits of lovers, families and sapeurs. Emmanuelle Béthery began the restoration work in 2020 on her return in Paris with the aim to preserve and share the work of Maurice Pellosh.

In June 2021, Maurice Pellosh's first solo show opened at Galerie Beaurepaire in Paris.

His work has been exhibited in Paris, Arles and Dar es Salaam. A documentary and a book on his life and work are underway.