Photography: ‘Such exhibitions can teach the young a lot’
250 photographs selected from more than 1,500 entries.
A three-member jury had shortlisted around 250 pictures from more than 1,500 entries by more than 150 young photographers from all over Pakistan.
LAHORE:
The second National Photographic Art Exhibition at Alhamra, which began on Monday, was both a learning and rewarding experience for young photographers.
The exhibition was opened to the public after prizes were distributed among the top three photographers and 10 administrative awards, to encourage the young photographers, were handed out. It will go on till June 7.
A three-member jury had shortlisted around 250 pictures from more than 1,500 entries by more than 150 young photographers from all over Pakistan.
The event is a collaboration of the Photographic Art Society of Pakistan and Alhamra Arts Council.
Sayyed Nayyer Raza, a senior photographer and a jury member, said that while selecting the best pictures, the jury had looked at the subject matter, the composition, the presentation, the perspective and how light had been handled.
The Shepherd at Derawar by Azhar Ali Chaudhry won the first prize, Hiran Minar by Irfan Mirza was declared the second best photograph and the third prize was shared by Hamida Khatri, Agha Waseem Ahmed and Muhammad Amjad Sadiq.
Mirza told The Express Tribune that he had taken the photograph just before sunrise and believed that the colours of the sky and the cloud texture captured were what won him the second prize.
Haroon Agriman, whose picture Where There is A Will won one of the administrative awards said of his photograph, “It shows the resolve of a young boy who climbed up a six feet tall door to unbolt it. I played with the light and shade.” Agriman took the photograph with a mobile phone camera.
Curator of the gallery, Tanya Suhail, said that photography had gained popularity in Pakistan especially after the advent of digital cameras. However, she added, “quality photographs” are not easy to come by.
“Being technically skilled does not necessarily mean aesthetically viable,” said Suhail, adding that exhibitions could teach aspiring photographers a lot about aesthetics.
To help the young photographers learn from the masters, a slide show featuring photographs taken by senior photographers Tabish Nayemi, Razzaq Vance, Saleem Khawer, Sayyed Nayyer Raza and Samiur Rehman was shown.
Rehman had encouraging words about the work of the young photographers. “The print quality is very good. The overall presentation and the lighting in the pictures were [also] excellent,” he said.
In artist Quddus Mirza’s opinion most of the photographers had chosen to play it safe, “[Some works] show a different perspective and experiment with the form but by and large conventional themes and techniques [have been employed].”
Caretaker Chief Minister Najam Sethi was the chief guest and he, too, was impressed by the young artists’ work. “These pictures should be placed in the Chief Minister’s Secretariat and the Governor’s House and be given away as souvenirs to foreign delegates,” said Sethi. He said this would promote Pakistani talent and a softer image of the country across the globe.
He regretted that photography – which he described as a “serious [form of] art” – had failed to get the recognition some other forms of art and literature enjoyed.
Sethi announced a Rs1.5 million donation for the Photographic Art Society of Pakistan. A committee – headed by Ataul Haq Qasmi – was also constituted and given the task of short listing photographs that could be purchased by the government. The committee was also given Rs1 million. Some of the money will be distributed among the prize winners. The rest will be used to purchase the shortlisted photographs.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 29th, 2013.
The second National Photographic Art Exhibition at Alhamra, which began on Monday, was both a learning and rewarding experience for young photographers.
The exhibition was opened to the public after prizes were distributed among the top three photographers and 10 administrative awards, to encourage the young photographers, were handed out. It will go on till June 7.
A three-member jury had shortlisted around 250 pictures from more than 1,500 entries by more than 150 young photographers from all over Pakistan.
The event is a collaboration of the Photographic Art Society of Pakistan and Alhamra Arts Council.
Sayyed Nayyer Raza, a senior photographer and a jury member, said that while selecting the best pictures, the jury had looked at the subject matter, the composition, the presentation, the perspective and how light had been handled.
The Shepherd at Derawar by Azhar Ali Chaudhry won the first prize, Hiran Minar by Irfan Mirza was declared the second best photograph and the third prize was shared by Hamida Khatri, Agha Waseem Ahmed and Muhammad Amjad Sadiq.
Mirza told The Express Tribune that he had taken the photograph just before sunrise and believed that the colours of the sky and the cloud texture captured were what won him the second prize.
Haroon Agriman, whose picture Where There is A Will won one of the administrative awards said of his photograph, “It shows the resolve of a young boy who climbed up a six feet tall door to unbolt it. I played with the light and shade.” Agriman took the photograph with a mobile phone camera.
Curator of the gallery, Tanya Suhail, said that photography had gained popularity in Pakistan especially after the advent of digital cameras. However, she added, “quality photographs” are not easy to come by.
“Being technically skilled does not necessarily mean aesthetically viable,” said Suhail, adding that exhibitions could teach aspiring photographers a lot about aesthetics.
To help the young photographers learn from the masters, a slide show featuring photographs taken by senior photographers Tabish Nayemi, Razzaq Vance, Saleem Khawer, Sayyed Nayyer Raza and Samiur Rehman was shown.
Rehman had encouraging words about the work of the young photographers. “The print quality is very good. The overall presentation and the lighting in the pictures were [also] excellent,” he said.
In artist Quddus Mirza’s opinion most of the photographers had chosen to play it safe, “[Some works] show a different perspective and experiment with the form but by and large conventional themes and techniques [have been employed].”
Caretaker Chief Minister Najam Sethi was the chief guest and he, too, was impressed by the young artists’ work. “These pictures should be placed in the Chief Minister’s Secretariat and the Governor’s House and be given away as souvenirs to foreign delegates,” said Sethi. He said this would promote Pakistani talent and a softer image of the country across the globe.
He regretted that photography – which he described as a “serious [form of] art” – had failed to get the recognition some other forms of art and literature enjoyed.
Sethi announced a Rs1.5 million donation for the Photographic Art Society of Pakistan. A committee – headed by Ataul Haq Qasmi – was also constituted and given the task of short listing photographs that could be purchased by the government. The committee was also given Rs1 million. Some of the money will be distributed among the prize winners. The rest will be used to purchase the shortlisted photographs.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 29th, 2013.