Faces, Unforgotten
Faces, Unforgotten
Philip Blenkinsop's lecture at CM VIII
Twice over World Press Photo Award winner Philip Blenkinsop is one of the most notable photographers of his generation, and is currently in town for Chobi Mela VIII.
On January 26, Blenkinsop presented slideshows of his work and videos at the Goethe-Institut--one of the many attractions lined up for Chobi Mela. He began by expressing his thankfulness for the absence of the internet at the start of his journalistic career. He said that the freedom from being constantly tracked via phone or internet allowed him to go away for long periods and lose himself in the lives of his subjects. In his view, journalists' race to get to get the news first stopped them from settling down and familiarising themselves with the lives of those whose stories they wanted to tell.
His presentations comprised of a display of his handmade photobooks with relics and photographs from his journeys into the war-torn regions of Southeast Asia, panoramas that gave a wider view of the destruction caused by war, videos of the busy streets of Dhaka and a party in Barcelona. The videos seemed almost random at first -- as if they were just home videos awkwardly zoomed onto people's faces. But that is exactly why they slowly opened up to us with a different perspective - the faces, expressions and behaviour of the people slowly surfaced out of the noise. It made the audience see the city in detail and pay attention to the hundreds of faces that pass them by. He also showed polaroids from his journeys with the guerillas of East Timor, smudged with blood and their stories scribbled on them which he read out. And all of a sudden, all these soldiers who may or may not be alive now, and their struggles, their fears and their hold on their relics from their homes were familiar to the audience.
Blenkinsop's exhibition, “Of Mortals and Remembrance”, is open to the public at the Pathshala South Asian Media Institute for Chobi Mela VIII till February 5. Meanwhile, more lectures and presentations by local and international photographers are lined up at the festival.