Mexican wrap

Kickstarting today, this is a pictorial dialogue between the stalwarts of contemporary photographyu00a0-- Graciela Iturbide and Raghu Rai

THE impact of stills lingers for long, and if the photogs behind the lens are Raghu Rai and Graciela Iturbide, the shock or surprise won't fade in a lifetime. Probably that's the reason why these two stalwarts of photography have added more encores with each passing show. Now that they're back as a duo in the Capital, we give you the lowdown on their show. Read on.


The Day Before was shot in Ayodhya in 1990 by Raghu Rai

On a tour
The exhibition of contemporary photography showcases more than 60 works by the Mexican and Indian photographers. The series, An Eye To An Eye, is a quick look at both Mexico and India as seen through the eyes of these masters. Says 68-year-old Graciela Iturbide who is revered for the depth and aesthetic value of her photographs that are heavily inspired by the culture, rituals and day-to-day happenings in Mexico as well as in other countries: "If you ask me to pick one work as my favourite, I wouldn't be able to do that because I don't even remember the moments when I clicked the pictures. During one of my visits to Amber, I saw this girl throwing chunks of bread to monkeys and pigeons, who had gathered in large groups around her.u00a0 And whenever she would throw a piece, they would fight. It was amazing since I was witnessing something of this sort for the first time. My showcased works also feature works from Africa, America and Mexico."

Banarasi Babu
For the past four decades, her works have been establishing relationships between man and nature, individual and cultural, real and imaginary, world over. And now she is a most potent inspiration to the newer lot of photographers. She adds, "Benaras (Varanasi) is by far my favourite destination, and whenever I'm
in India, I visit the city of
innumerable flavours. On all my visits to the country, I make it a point to visit two or three cities but this time, for my next series of work, I'll only go to Goa."

What: An Eye for an Eye
At: Instituto Cervantes, Hanuman Road, Connaught Place
On till: October 31
Timings: 11 am to 7 pm
Ring: 43681907