Doug Hancock ‘Riders of the Buffalo Nations’ – A Photobook Celebrating Contemporary First Nations Youth Culture
In Riders of the Buffalo Nations, photographer and filmmaker Doug Hancock turns his lens on contemporary First Nations youth – Indigenous communities of North America – living on reservations in South Dakota and Montana. His images capture rodeos, friendships, moments of focus and release, and a daily reality shaped by resilience, pride, and adaptation.
The rodeo becomes a powerful metaphor – for balance and risk, falling and getting back up, for life on the reservation itself. Hancock portrays a young generation navigating tradition and the present on their own terms – not as victims, but as complex individuals marked by contradiction, ambition, and possibility.
His photographs are intimate, respectful, and free of folkloristic clichés. They reveal how Indigenous culture continues to evolve without losing its roots – and how community, strength, and spirit endure across generations.
“The work shows Native youth as they are – hopeful, reckless, thoughtful, and full of possibility. Life is tough on the reservations, but their hearts have never hardened.” Doug Hancock
“What’s special about Indian rodeo is that tribes come together at fairs where horse racing, powwows, and rodeos are all part of the same gathering. Your aunts, uncles, and family are in the stands watching you. You ride with a sense of pride, representing your family. It brings people together, much like it did one hundred and fifty years ago.” Troy Heinert, Executive Director of the InterTribal Buffalo Council, which is dedicated to restoring the buffalo on tribal lands and strengthening the cultural revitalization of Indigenous communities.
Doug Hancock is an Amsterdam-based photographer and filmmaker whose work centers on identity and cultural transformation. He produces international documentary and film projects and works as an award-winning cinematographer, managing both production and post-production from his own studio.
Doug Hancock – Riders of the Buffalo Nations
Kerber Verlag
24 × 31 cm, 220 pages, 103 color plates, hardcover, English, ISBN 978-3-7356-1080-5
Texts by Doug Hancock, Design by Doug Hancock / Adam Murphy, Amsterdam
CREDITS
Photographer Doug Hancock
Publisher Kerber Verlag