Page 462 - Art and Crafts of Bangladesh

PHOTOGRAPHY 459

6.6 Environment
Bangladesh is a poverty stricken country of the
third world with a huge population. Its natural and
human environment is continually being polluted
or impaired. Industrialization, urbanization, lack of
public awareness, mismanagement, the use of
harmful chemicals and the forests endangered by
criminal rings, the environment with its natural life
is a large issue in our photography. Along with
various manmade issues, floods-droughts-land lost
to the rivers and other natural calamities that ravage
the environment of the land is also a big issue in our
photography. The influence of polluted or
imperiled environment on humans and wild
animals has also been considered. Various anti-
environmental activities have been identified in
photographs. Bangladesh, Paribeshchitra (2001) as fig. 10.38 (top left) and
well as the publications of ‘Bangladesh Environmental Journalists Forum’ have
represented destruction of plant life, arsenic pollution, river-grabbing, poisonous fig. 10.39 (top right)
waste, water-logging, ship-breaking, use of polythene, the filling of lakes and other Photograph Shafiqul
natural water-bodies and the environment endangered by these activities through the Alam Kiron/MAP, a
woman acid victim,
photographs of various photographers. This type of photography has been represented winning first prize in
in publications of Society for Environment and Human Development (SEHD) as well People in the News
as other NGOs involved in environmental issues. Phillip Gain has worked for a division of the World
prolonged period on the forests and various environmental issues of the country. Press Photo
SEHD has published Stolen Forest (2006), an album representing endangered forests, Competition of 1999
wild life and culture and various related issues with his photographs. © Shafiqul Alam Kiron/MAP
6.7 Architecture and Archaeological Evidences
Many photographers have tried to capture the images of architectural remains fig. 10.40 (bottom)
Culture of the forest:
scattered all over Bangladesh. The style of construction and aesthetics of these have worship for the dead,
also been identified in the photographs as well as their historicity. Many albums and photograph Phillip Gain
books have been published on this subject. Some photographs of this type have been © Phillip Gain
featured in the books Bangladesh
Archaeology (1997), and An Album of
Archaeological Relics in Bangladesh
(1984) published by the Department of
Archaeology. Lyrics in Terracotta,
Kantajeer Mandir (1992, photographs
by Mustafizur Rahman) was published
with various scenes of the beautifully
crafted terracotta decorated Kantajee