kathmandu, kathmandu.

kathmandu, kathmandu.
an exhibition by contemporary nepali photographers

6 – 13 April 2011 | 12 – 7 PM
Nepal Art Council, Babar Mahal

‘Kathmandu’ means very different things to different people, depending on whether they have lived in the city or not. The West is still liable to think of Kathmandu as a sort of a mythical Shangri-La. Nepalis from outside the Kathmandu Valley may see it as the land of opportunity, a mecca for those seeking their fortunes.

But what of those who have lived here for years on end, particularly those who have witnessed the tumultuous changes of the last couple of decades? For these, Kathmandu is not just the place to seek your dreams. It is the past, present and future, a multiplicity of forms that incorporates all imaginings.

kathmandu, kathmandu. is an attempt by 20 young photographers to capture this fascinating simultaneity. Guided by mentors from photo.circle (Kathmandu) and Pathshala South Asian Media Academy (Dhaka) the group explored the medium of visual storytelling through photography, and sought to present an insider’s perspective of Kathmandu. In their imagery we see the people who live here, rich and poor and in-between, at work, play, and repose. In their representation of the city, monks read the newspapers, teenagers hang out, children prepare for school, family members interact, and dogs await their masters. We see that Kathmandu is a city of dense habitation and open spaces, the shabby and the spanking new, and that it is still, in pockets, the countryside.

As a body of work produced by a new generation of photographers, kathmandu, kathmandu. is an attempt to capture the visual poetry of the metropolis while challenging the notion that it is simply a mythical space, or just another third world city.

PHOTOGRAPHERS
aayusha shrestha
abhinav joshi
anjali maharjan
anuj acharya
arjun karki
bikram rai
krishna sinjali
phurpu tsering gurung
prasiit sthapit
prem sherpa
priti sherchan
pujan harsha bajracharya
sachindra rajbansi
sajana shrestha
sapna shah
shristi rajbhandari
shrijit rajbhandari
sujan shrestha
sunil pradhan
uma bista

(the exhibition will be open from 12 to 7 pm until 13 april)

ONLINE GALLERY kathmandu, kathmandu.

ALSO READ
Kathmandu, Kathmandu (Republica | 7 April 2011)
Kathmandu, Kathmandu (The Kathmandu Post | 14 April 2011)