By UZMA ALEEM
What makes a photographic masterpiece’ It might be a perfectly balanced still-life, bathed in natural light. It might be a stirring portrait or a captured moment of history or a sublime landscape. Great photographs can intrigue us, astound us, mystify us, move us.
The photographs in a recently held exhibition by Pakistan Association of Photo Journalists ‘ all drawn by photojournalists of Pakistan ‘ shared a special, intangible quality that set them apart from the billions of other camera images taken over the last 168 years after the invention of camera.
This was the one of the major exhibitions of photography ever to be held in Pakistan. It took a unique look at the journey of Pakistani news photography, which used new technology to make and display imagery of Pakistan.
This exhibition was organised by Pakistan Association of Photo Journalists (PAPJ). The first ever 3-day National Photo Exhibition was held in Lahore from June 21 to June 23, in which more than 700 best news photos related to Pakistan were displayed.
This exhibition of Pakistani photojournalists received a grand response from both the journalists’ community and the aesthetically refined strata of the society alike.
F.E chaudhry, renowned photographer, also visited the mega event showcasing more than 700 photographs of 350 photojournalists of the country, including, Zahid Bashir, Akhter Shah, Ijaz Lahory, Gull Nawaz, Majeed Goraya, Abid Zia, Hassan Mahmood, Ghulam Akber Baber, Muhammad Ramzan, Nadeem Ejaz, Akram Shahid, Danish Pirzada, Irshad Sheikh, Imran Jaffery, Khalid Tanveer, Ibrar Tanoli, Zahid Hussain, Rafiq Nasir, Muhammad Arshad among others, at Alhamra Arts Council.
The brilliant display of extra-ordinary talent and artistic vision of the photojournalists, who have been in the field for years, was nothing but a refreshing and mesmerizing experience for image-lovers.
Majeed Nizami, editor-in-chief of Nawa-i-Waqt Group, also visited this exhibition and appreciated the efforts of Pakistani photojournalists. Moreover a great number of people along eminent MPAs and MNAs and artists like Jimmy Engineer and Dr. Ejaz Anwar visited this exhibition and loved the photographs of photo journalists.
The images in this exhibition had come from the length and breadth of Pakistan, and included well-known oeuvres alongside mesmerising landscapes. As well as famous names ‘ Banezir Bhutto, Nawaz Shariff, and Yousaf Raza Gillani, among them ‘ the exhibition included news photographs, fashion shoots, photographs depicting flora and fauna of Pakistan, propaganda and social documents in the form of images. It included works by many famous photo journalists and photographers from different cultural backgrounds who are usually underplayed in the history of Pakistani photography.
Ultimately, this was a treasure trove for any one who loved photography, and presented the extraordinary variety, breadth and idiosyncratic nature of many years of image making in Pakistan.
Secretary General, Pakistan Association of Photo Journalists, Muhammad Ramzan while talking to SPlus, said that 350 photo journalists drawn from across the country participated in this mega event.
He said important and the best photos of previous photo exhibition depicting ‘Soft Image of Pakistan’ those were displayed in Tokyo on March 20 last and got great appreciation from Japanese were part of this exhibition too.
Some of the photographs depicted human’s curiosity in the simple village folks, while some of the photographs had close encounters with light and shade, many photographs portrayed panoramic vision and in-depth understanding of the social and political life of Pakistan. Several images displayed the extra-ordinarily keen interest in people’s lives of Pakistan and its many manifestations and some of the photographer’s love for nature and scenic beauty are but a few hallmarks of the grand display.
Talking to SPlus, Provincial Minister Raja Raiz said that photojournalists were introducing soft image of Pakistani nation throughout the world through their creative and artistic work, adding Lahore was a hub of cultural and inventive activities. Meanwhile, he visited the section of exhibition especially devoted on the life of slain PPP Chairperson Benazir Bhutto.
The photographic section depicted the life of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto; her historical moments with family including father Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, mother Nusrat Bhutto, sister Sanam Bhutto, brothers Shahnawaz and Murtaza Bhutto, husband President Asif Ali Zardari and children Bilawal, Bakhtawar and Asifa.
The photos of Benazir’s interactions with the world leaders including George Bush Sr., Margaret Thatcher, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Francois Mitterand, Yasser Arafat, Indira Gandhi and Hamid Karzai were also on display.
Besides photos depicting during the two time premiership , her untiring struggle for the restoration of democracy in Pakistan which culminated in her assassination in December, 2007 were also displayed in pictures
Lauding the artistic standard of the photographs presented in the exhibition, Dr. Ejaz Anwar said Pakistani photojournalists possessed tremendous artistic and creative potential along news sense. He said they had reflected their experiences and inner feelings in an artistic and skilful manner in the photographs.
Efforts of PAPJ are tremendous they are striving hard for the development and welfare of photojournalists like PAPJ sent a photojournalist to Japan for professional training. Around 200 photographs of the leading photojournalists had been put on display. The exhibition was being held in collaboration with online Urdu Netpodcast and Pakistan Association of Photojournalists.
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