Photography and Tibet (Exposures) - Softcover

" Photography and Tibet "is an invaluable introduction to the multiple ways that Tibet has been depicted through photography. I hope this book will enable the general public to have an idea of the rich and ancient Buddhist culture of Tibet, with its natural heritage of nonviolence and compassion, which has the potential to benefit humanity at large. I therefore welcome this book. --The Dalai Lama" "This expansive, intricate, and virtuosic account offers a radical rethinking of photography's relationship with Tibet. Rejecting orientalist narratives of that relationship, Harris addresses the entangled political and cultural dynamics of the medium, from the colonial period to the twenty-first century, through which Tibetan culture has been understood and understands itself."--Elizabeth Edwards, Photographic History Research Centre, De Monfort University "A wonderful survey-cum-detective story about the multiple locations of Tibet, and the role of the camera in making them visible. We come to understand the heavy burden of representation in this context, and the remarkable tenacity of 'aura' when the photograph attempts to suture the wounds of exile. This a compelling and authoritative account, filled with important new materials and vivid connections, that takes us to the heart of practices caught in the crossfire of different visions of Tibet."--Christopher Pinney, professor of anthropology and visual culture, University College London "Photography and Tibet is an invaluable introduction to the multiple ways that Tibet has been depicted through photography. I hope this book will enable the general public to have an idea of the rich and ancient Buddhist culture of Tibet, with its natural heritage of nonviolence and compassion, which has the potential to benefit humanity at large. I therefore welcome this book."--The Dalai Lama Photography and Tibet is an invaluable introduction to the multiple ways that Tibet has been depicted through photography. I hope this book will enable the general public to have an idea of the rich and ancient Buddhist culture of Tibet, with its natural heritage of nonviolence and compassion, which has the potential to benefit humanity at large. I therefore welcome this book. --The Dalai Lama"

Mysterious and often inaccessible, Tibet has been a source of fascination to outsiders for centuries and a troublesome and resistant subject for photographers. Even today, photography of Tibet often remains embroiled in debates about Tibet's past, present and future. This book is the first historical survey of photography in Tibet and the Himalayas. It offers a remarkable new insight into the attempts of foreign and Tibetan photographers to document the country from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day. Leading Tibetologist Clare Harris combines the results of extensive research in museums and archives with fieldwork in Tibetan communities to present material that has never been seen or discussed before. Images featured in this book include the earliest photographs taken in Tibet in1863, the experimental camerawork of senior Tibetan monks, including that of the thirteenth Dalai Lama, and the creations of contemporary Tibetan photographers and artists