New Caledonia made the headlines with its independence referendum on November 4th 2018.
This book enables us to understand the foundation of Kanak culture – ”custom” – a manifold and complex notion that runs and accompanies the lives of the Melanesians of New Caledonia, from birth until death, in their social connections as well as in their relation to space.
This graphic and photographic reportage is also original in its form.
As a reporter and an observer of humans in their contemporary settings, Sébastien Lebègue is fully integrated with Kanak daily life, which he shares through his photos and illustrations. His book offers a rich and complex vision of the “custom”.
Apart from its obvious aesthetic dimension, it is a solid scientific study. Sébastien Lebègue is an artist but with his precision and passion, he also acts as a researcher and a transmitter of knowledge. Many texts provide explanations supported by a rich and precise scientific documentation as well as accounts from the people following the “custom” in their daily existence. At the same time, he gives a lot of space to images. Photographs and drawings inject sensitivity and life to the customary events and draw the reader to the heart of contemporary Kanak society.

The format allows a dual approach: the first one, precise and documented, follows the logical presentation of information on the topic – the second, more delicate, takes the reader on a journey through the illustrations and the personal accounts.