KATHMANDU, Nov 4: Taragaon Lecture Series-6 was organized on Thursday at Taragaon Museum, Bouddha. Taragaon Lecture Series is the initiation of Saraf Foundation for Himalayan Traditions and Culture. Taragaon Lecture Series-6 is also a follow- on from the first lecture series launched in 2015.

“The Saraf Foundation for Himalayan Traditions and Culture supports the preservation, restoration and documentation of arts and heritage of the Kathmandu Valley. The foundation also supports the hard working individuals who have worked regularly towards these goals.” The press statement released by Taragaon Museum read.

It added that Taragaon Lecture Series is organized every year with an aim at recognizing these intellectuals who spent their time in Nepal and made it their home, traveling far and wide across the Himalayan country. It is a platform, to let the public know about their valuable contribution in documenting the history and culture of Nepal.

This year, British architect John Harrison was invited for Taragaon Lecture Series – 6. He talked about his extensive work and experiences while working in Mustang. 

Born in 1941, in the north of England, he studied architecture and town planning at Liverpool University, and then worked on historic buildings in architectural practice. In the autumn of 1985, he had been travelling east for half a year after getting on the train in Liverpool, Lime Street. He travelled through Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Pakistan. He trekked from Pokhara through the middle hills, up the Kali Gandaki valley between Dhaulagiri and Annapurna and into the Tibetan Buddhist world of Mustang.  The north of Kagbeni was still the forbidden kingdom in 1985.

The lecture was followed by an exhibition of his architectural drawings of Mustang featuring about 100 such drawings. The exhibition also features 10 photographs of Mustang by American documentary photographer, Kevin Bubriski, who won Golden Light Documentary Award in 1993 for his book ‘Portrait of Nepal’. And ‘Chimang Village Survey’ Catalogue by John Harrison and Mohan Pant was also launched in the event. 

The exhibition will continue till November 14.