A Message From Nick (May 2008)

I have recently returned from my latest trip to Punjab and Kashmir, of which more a little later; but if you have been on my web site recently you will have an inkling of what I have been up to. If not, and you have a moment, take a look at the Living Divinely gallery; the first 3 pictures are new to the series, also the Nihangs of Punjab have several more new images.  And I've added a new gallery, Kashmir.  

The first week I spent in and around Anandpur Sahib to take in the Sikh festival of Hola Mohalla. The medium sized town plays host for 3-4 days to hundreds of thousands of Sikhs who come to celebrate the occasion by offering prayers at the historic gurdwara of Kesgarh Sahib, enjoying the atmosphere and hanging out in the Nihang Deras (camps) dotted around the town. It feels as though the town will be totally overwhelmed with the sheer numbers arriving,  but actually somehow the creaking infrastructure manages to cope and everybody is accommodated. 

Nobody is in danger of remaining hungry for too long as food is plentiful, prepared in the traditional Sikh way in the free community kitchens. Tankers full of milk, trailers full of vegetables and sacks of other consumables are donated and brought into town from farms all over Punjab to be cooked and distributed in these large make-shift kitchens. It seems that at any time of day or night long lines of people can be seen seated in tented awnings tucking into hot vegetable curry and lentils. For four days a vast army of volunteers peel and chop vegetables, keep the fires burning, stir the vast vats of bubbling stews, serve the hungry, wash up the mountains of metal plates and utensils waiting to be distributed to the next in line, and sweep the floors.

 The cramped thoroughfares, narrow lanes and alleyways are lined with merchants selling trinkets and tat,  and everywhere there are huge throngs of people. The warm breeze is thick with wood smoke and a strong sticky aroma which is at once recognisable but somehow indefinable a not unpleasant mixture of freshly cut grass, horses, spices, spring scented flowers and marijuana.

With a sharp change in almost everything, climate, religion, tradition, food, dress and landscape I spent the next month or so in Kashmir. Hoping for pleasant dry spring weather we were served up with everything but. I was returning to Kashmir for the second time in three months to add further to the Living Divinely series I have been compiling for the last ten years or so. To this end I concentrated my photographic efforts this time in the main mosques and shrines within the city of Srinagar only venturing out on one occasion when we visited the town of Sopore and its surrounding area. 

Generally I found mosques and the people who oversee them to be friendly and helpful. Some places forbid photography and others are not open to non Muslims but, although we encountered curious looks and many questions for spending so long in some of these places, we were left pretty much alone to get on with what we were doing. I find Kashmir a fascinating place as it is so different from all other parts of India. Building up a picture of life in this area is a challenge and certainly a worthwhile one and so to this end I will continue to return.

I would like to thank my assistant, Dalbir Singh, who accompanied me on this trip and who took these photographs. 

Finally, we now are offering Studio Grade Prints of every image in the website galleries.  These are similar to our Fine Art Prints but are printed in a more affordable way.  We're doing an introductory price of £20 for A4 size (11.7"x8.3") and £30 for A3 (16.5"x11.7").  Also, until the end of Thursday, 15 May, if you buy prints of any three images of one size you can choose a fourth of the same size for free.  Just go to any gallery and view an image.  Purchasing details are in a box on the upper right.

I hope you enjoy the new photographs and blog posts. Let me know what you think.

Yours,

Nick

London, May 2008

What next?

• View the new Kashmir gallery
• See the new photos from Hola Mohalla 2008
• Listen to a podcast about the Kashmir Saffron Harvest