The exhibition, which will run till Saturday, January 9 at the Nepal Art Council in Kathmandu, is an effort of 10 amateur photographers – Chetez Tamang, Gaurav Dhwaj Khadka, Kushal Goyal, Prazwol Bhattarai, Prazwol Sijapati, Sagar Chitrakar, Shikhar Bhattrai, Sneha Shrestha, and Swapnil Acharya.
On January 3, along with the official launch of nepalphotography.org, “Photokavya”—the first project of the web portal – was inaugurated by the veteran photographer Hari Bangsha Kirant.
“Back in 2006, there were no sites to refer to when one wanted information on the latest photography activities in the country,” says the conceptualizer of the portal, Gaurav Dhwaj Khadka, and adds, “That’s how the idea of nepalphotography.org clicked.”
However, as he had to go abroad for his further studies, Gaurav discontinued the portal. “But after I came home, the portal was brought back to life in the summer of 2009 with the help of CUC Galleria, a gallery dedicated to photography exhibition, and my friends,” Gaurav narrates.
The 50 photographs on display are both in color and black & white format. A few photographs are digitally enhanced; for instance, lights have been played with to entice particular moods in the snaps.
In the context, when digital enhancement in photography is still debatable, Swapnil Acharya, one of the participating photographers and creative head of the portal, opines, “Art and technology are integrated. And technology has given us an advantage; so we must utilize it.
“A photographer enhancing his/her works isn’t wrong until and unless something is added to or deleted from the photo,” adds Swapnil, a professional graphic designer.
An ascetic preparing ganja (marijuana) in broad daylight, and a street child sitting next to a dog with mange which has caused loss of half of its body hair, are some of the grim images captured in the photos.
Some photographers have explored different angles to present the regular sights and portraits that appear in photos or postcards. For instance, a photo of the Swayambhunath by artist Sneha Shrestha isn’t a regular shot of the stupa.
“I’m trying to show our everyday Nepali lives in a non-postcard kind of way. Not necessarily the “opposite” or pretty postcard pictures, but through a different angle,” says the artist who feels photography is a form of art, and art is a form of expression. “And through art, I can express my worldview.”
A portrait of an old lady by Kushal Goyal has been able to freeze a moment where the subject seems like she is frowning, but at the same time, it also appears like she is pouting like a young girl posing for a photo.
“My Job”, a photo-book by Sneha, funded by Project for Peace, is also on sale at the exhibit.
“It’s a children book which highlights some everyday chores we see around in Nepal. And its purpose is to demonstrate that all jobs are equally important to all of us,” Sneha informs. “Children looking at the pictures and the captions, which are in English and Nepali, will get a sense of real-life images of these functions.”
This self-funded exhibition by the photographers is reasonably priced. And the captions have been well thought out and inserted. For instance, “Timi chai mero...huss?” (You’re mine, okay?) is a caption of one of the photos of Sneha’s. She elucidates, “It’s what the old woman begging at the foothill of Swayambhu was telling her puppy.”
Nepalphotography.org is a club of photography enthusiasts, which publishes an online magazine and aims to promote the art of photography.
“Anyone can submit works on a given theme to participate in the upcoming exhibitions or the zine,” informs Swapnil. Some 22 people have contributed their works to the first issue of the online zine, which has photos on three different subjects—sky, flower, and light. The zine is a quarterly publication.
On January 9, the closing day, a digital presentation of the photos of “Photokavya” will be screened by photo.cirlce at 2:45 pm, which will be followed by interaction between the photographers and participants present at the same venue.
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