27/10/2023
Steve McCurry
Flower Seller, Dal Lake - Kashmir, 1996
59 x 39 x 7cm
23 1/4 x 15 3/8 x 2 3/4 in
FujiFlex Crystal Archive print
Named, dated and hand-signed by the
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The disputed region of Kashmir has been at the centre of increasing tensions between India and Pakistan since they came into being in 1947, both claiming the region in its entirety and controlling a section of the territory. The two countries have gone to war multiple times over Kashmir, with atrocities such as kidnapping and murder throughout the 90s keeping the region and its constant disruption in the news. McCurry, when describing his experience, mentioned the countries unrest, ‘In Kashmir I felt there was always tension…It was a very alarming experience’.
While visiting Dal Lake in 1996, McCurry travelled with the local flower sellers every morning as they floated down the river, documenting their journey. Flower Seller, Dal Lake, Srinagar, Kashmir, 1996 depicts a flower seller as he paddles on Dal Lake’s quiet waters, his arm raised mid-paddle slightly breaking the water with his stride. The boat is full of brilliant blooming flowers of every colour, the morning light filling the composition with a unique sense of vibrancy. McCurry strived to capture life away from the violence of this beautiful region, his photographs encapsulating the Kashmiri people’s perseverance and resilience, the candid nature of his work showing his subjects at their least self-conscious and most revealing.