The artistry of photography has seen commendable growth since the 1980s in Bangladesh due to the emergence of some talented photographers. Works of these Bangladeshi photographers caught notice of audiences both at home and abroad. Seven such talented photographers from Pathshala South Asian Media Institute, Bangladesh–Shahidul Alam, Abir Abdullah, Anisul Hoque, Taslima Akhter, Tushikur Rahman, Sarker Protick and Jannatul Mawa have participated in an exhibition at Keble College in Oxford, UK. The exhibition titled Defying the Laws of Gravity was a part of a biennial photography festival titled Photography Oxford Festival 2014 held from September 14 to October 5.
Photography Oxford Festival 2014, which was inaugurated by Ed Vaizey, minister of culture, communications and creative industries of Britain, featured an array of events and exhibitions. The festival also included discussion sessions, debates, workshops, films and competitions at 22 venues across the city. Apart from Bangladeshis, photographers from the United States, Germany, New Zealand, France, Finland, Egypt, Italy and the United Kingdom participated at the festival, which included a total of 24 group and solo exhibitions at the festival.
In one of the photos on display at the exhibition, noted photographer Jannatul Mawa has captured two women sitting on a sofa. One of them is a Bangladeshi middle class housewife and the other is her domestic help. The photo inspires different chains of thoughts as Mawa pairs up two individuals belonging to two different social classes.
‘It was a great honour for us to participate in an exhibition at Oxford that was dedicated to Bangladeshi photographers. The exhibition showed the world the standard Bangladeshi photographers have achieved in terms of the art of photography,’ said Abir Abdullah, noted photographer who participated in the exhibition.
-With New Age input
