Nostalgie 05 : A black and white photo expo by Kumar De Silva 

The streets of Paris were brought to life at the Lionel Wendt as ‘Nostalgie 05’ the fifth of a series of photo expos was ceremonially opened for public viewing by Kumar De Silva himself. Presented as part of the French Spring Festival 2015, hosted by the Embassy of France in Sri Lanka and Alliance Francaise de Kotte, ‘Nostalgie 05’ – The Streets of Paris’ was a concept dedicated to raise funds in aid of the scholarship fund of the children of the award-winning ‘Nation/Rivira’ press photographer, the late Rukshan Abeywansa.

Cinema legend Iranganie Serasinghe graced the evening as the Honourable Chief Guest amidst a galore of celebrities including Sriyani Amarasena, Sangeetha Weeraratne, Sabitha Pieris, Angela Seneviratne, Semini Iddamalgoda, Yasodha Wimaladharma and other popular personalities including Chandran Rutnam, Ramani Fernando, Jith Pieris and former Army Commander Daya Ratnayake.

It was not only photographs that adorned the Lionel Wendt gallery, but elegant looking silhouettes that were standing beside the ‘street’, engaged in conversations, painting and posing much to the excitement of the guests. In the meantime Menaka De Fonseka Sahabandu, the popular pianist and soprano filled the halls with her charming vocals accompanied by a violinist. For the rest of the evening the guests were entertained by accordion music giving an impression of a typical street in Paris.

Kumar De Silva has had a long association with France spanning three decades. In recognition of his efforts in promoting the awareness and enrichment of France’s cultural heritage, he was bestowed with the title ‘Chevalier in the order of Arts and Letters’  by the French government.

By Kamanthi Wickramasinghe

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Kumar captures France: A photography exhibition 

Kumar De Silva, probably Sri Lanka's foremost almanac on all things French will hold his fifth photographic exhibition at the Lionel Wendt this weekend. Presented as part of the French Spring Festival 2015 and hosted by the Embassy of France in Sri Lanka and the Alliance Francaise de KOTTE the theme selected for this exhibition by this incurable Francophile is human behaviour.

As a self-confessed incurable francophone cum francophile who counts a thirty year association with France is there anything left for you to photograph?

Oh yes there’s plenty left …. and for me to photograph in my future successive incarnations too. As I said, the streets of Paris constitute a gigantic and living open-air art gallery with its little microcosms of performance art. There are its conscious performers whom people watch, look at, applaud and recompense, or even totally ignore and walk away. There are also those unconscious ones whose performances are more spontaneous and refreshingly unpredictable. They are there … all over. You only have to stop and look … as they unfold beneath your eyes in a multi-dimensional real-life performance”.

What motivates you to keep doing what you do?

I am generally a very intense person although I don’t show it at most times. I function best when the adrenaline rush is at its peak and I also know that it’s the worst equation for my stented heart. BUT I am very passionate about what I do – be it my professional job which pays my bills or my hobbies (such as this) which nourishes my soul. There’s no purpose in farcicality. Enjoy what you do and you’ll do it brilliantly.

The world is full of colour, why do you prefer black and white photography?

There’s a great deal of charm, and at times enigma, in black and white. It gives a totally different dimension, almost an ethereal and surrealistic feel. I have also been greatly influenced by the work of the two great French photographers Robert Doisneau and Henri-Cartier Bresson. The simplicity of their subjects, the interplay of darkness and light combined with the assortment of shades of gray, all contribute to a totally different visual. I am in awe.

How long did you spend collecting material for this exhibition?

Anything between two to five years.

Why is this year’s theme human behavioural patterns?

Human behavioural patterns are one of my strange hobbies. The human being is best watched when not on ‘alert’, when he or she is not performing for society. Therein lies the unfettered soul giving a spontaneous performance. And that ‘performance’ says a lot about the real personae within. At times I can literally ‘read’ a person and most often than not, I’m not wrong either.

What was the most challenging experience you had during your quest to photograph the vicissitudinous behaviour of humans?

The most challenging one is a constant one and that’s getting wretched onlookers and vehicles out of the way and seamlessly blending myself into the cityscape. This demands great volumes of patience which I’m not amply blessed with.

While on your mission, do you seek permission from your subject before clicking or do you generally sneak up and capture the image?

I generally do and it then KILLS that ‘unrehearsed performance’. So my answer to this delicate question is Yes and No. Gotcha!

This is your fifth exhibition, personally what do you derive from holding these exhibitions?

It gives me great satisfaction to share my work with the public and I shall always remain the amateur photographer I am. The images I exhibit are all un-doctored images with no computer tampering. I gain pleasure in sharing images just the way my eye saw them. They are in a sense the raw images I have shot. Believe me there’s also beauty in absolutely raw images with their flaws and imbalances. I must add that all profits from the sale of photographs will go to the Scholarship Fund of the children of the award-winning 'Nation' / 'Rivira' press photographer, the late Rukshan Abeywansa. This gives me a deeper sense of satisfaction which I cannot describe … to know that I can be of meaningful help to another.

By Tina Edward Gunawardhana
Photographs by Nisal Baduge