A photography exhibition titled ‘Red Utopia’ by Dutch photographer Jan Banning was inaugurated at Drik Gallery in Panthapath of the capital yesterday on the fourth day of the ongoing ‘Chobi Mela X’, the most prestigious photography festival in Asia.

Curator ASM Rezaur Rahman was in conversation with the artist and provided the context to the audience. The exhibition is based on photographs from five countries (India, Italy, Nepal, Portugal and Russia) where communism still walks about and dominates local mindsets. ‘Red Utopia’ looks at various corners of the world, where the ideology that so determined the course of the twentieth century is still alive and kicking.   

Earlier in the morning, two discussions were held at the Goethe Institut in the capital’s Dhanmondi. ‘Mirrors and Memories: Archival Practices Beyond Documentation’ was presented by Peter Pfrunder, director and curator of the Swiss Foundation for Photography. ‘Celebrating Mofussil Photographers of Bangladesh’ was another attraction presented by festival director, Shahidul Alam. The presentation rediscovered the visual history of studio photography in Bangladesh and created opportunities to look at the practices by our small-town photographers.

Later in the afternoon, a panel discussion took place titled ‘Engaging the Archive: Storytelling and Scholarship’, by Indian writer, curator, educator Alisha Sett and writer, filmmaker and cultural historian Samia Khatun, moderated by Nepali curator, artist and activist Nayantara Gurang Kakshapati at Goethe Institut.

In the evening, two artist’s talks also took place at Goethe Institut respectively by visual artist, writer and researcher Naeem Mohaiemen and Indian singer, songwriter and researcher Moushumi Bhowmik.

Photo : courtesy