Rich-Joseph Facun

© Rich-Joseph Facun

United Arab Emirates-based photographer Rich-Joseph Facun may have made a greater range of pictures of modern roller derby than anyone. Rich is based in the United Arab Emirates now but he traveled from bases in Virginia and Arizona for several years in pursuit of a body of work that would capture a resurgence of this eight-wheeled sport that is as much a way of life as it is a sporting event.

I helped Rich edit hundreds of pictures down to a book edit of fewer than 60 in a lyrical flow that weaves from intense action to scenes of camaraderie and hilarity and exhaustion and everything in between.

Rich approaches whatever he does with a kind intensity, as if he’s fire and water, yin and yang. It’s a good balance. I’ve known him since I hired him in Chicago about 10 years ago. That was a relatively brief connection so it was good to catch up with the depth of what he’s doing now.

It’s worth spending some time with his other work, too.