Up Close: Walls

Paris-based photographer Gael Turine captures a highly visible symbol of inequality in the Peruvian capital.

  • Words + Photography: Gael Turine

I shot this while working in Pamplona Alta, one of the biggest slums in Lima, Peru. The series of photos I took around the Lima wall – often dubbed Peru’s Berlin Wall – is part of a long-term project I am conducting on under-reported walls of separations around the world. This 10-kilometre-long wall separates Las Casuarinas, the wealthiest area in the country, from a very poor and overpopulated area.

I wanted to get an overview of the area so I decided to climb the hill. Baying packs of dogs were following me, which was pretty scary, but eventually only one remained. The dog turned and surveyed the scene below, as if reflecting on the hill where he has spent his life. It felt absolutely right to use that moment to frame this incredible urban divided landscape.

Gael Turine is a freelance documentary photographer based in Brussels and Paris.

Article taken from

Issue 07
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