Shirley Day Asian Rare Art

Exhibition of 19th & 20th Century Photographs of India & Sri Lanka

There is something romantic about a photograph. It stirs the memory and imagination; something intense, something personal, yet for us elusive, a mere glimpse of the beauty of truth. I have much pleasure in presenting these early images, which consist of 47 vintage photographs. They include works by significant names of the period: W. Griggs, Lala Deen Dayal, Felice Beato, Samuel Bourne, John Sache, William H.L. Skeen, and also unknown, talented amateurs. The subject matter encompasses famous architectural monuments and landscapes, daily life in villages, portraits of Maharajas and Fakirs The period ranges from the 1860s until about 1910, a time when the medium had undergone considerable developments in order to reach its peak.

My interest in photography began about six years ago, when I mounted a series of similar exhibitions at Cora Ginsburg, New York. What intrigues us most about these images, I think, is our perception, true or false, of a moment captured, frozen in time. Whether this is manipulated is beside the point; it offers proof of a sort. This may be a historical record of a changing world, the atmosphere of a place or building long since vanished, a shadowy portal to humanity, life in poverty or wealth, in chaos or calm. We are viewing authentic evidence of something which no longer exists, and we are seeing it through the photographer's perception, twice removed. We are seeing a vision of an exotic dreamlike world, through our own post colonial past.

Further information may be obtained by contacting us at asianrareart@att.net or day.s.j@att.net or by telephone 322 640 1584, mobile 32 473 420209 or by correspondence to 32 Rue Paul Emile Janson, Brussels 1050, Belgium.

Contact Us