Review on my latest book Nepal and Mao in Swedish Daily Newspaper Helsingborgs dagblad.
”In black and white images, he shows Nepalese people and environments in situations that are often characterized by dramatic social dynamics. It is an insider perspective, based on the presence and knowledge. ” Sören Sommelius
The mountain country Nepal has in recent decades undergone a dramatic development. After a ten-year civil war, which claimed more than 13 000 people dead, ousted the Maoist rebels, the country’s monarchy and proclaimed the People’s Republic of Nepal 2006. King Gyanendra stepped down after elections in 2008 when a coalition led by the Maoists took power. New governments have taken on, a new constitution to be adopted. The country, one of the world’s poorest, is in a dramatic transition.
Helsingborg -born photographer Olof Jarlbro visited the country for the first time in 1998 and has since repeated traveled and lived in Nepal. This year released “Nepal & Mao” (Rough dog Press), his third Nepalese photo book for “The Falling Kingdom” and “Stone Factory”.
Olof Jarlbro do not analyze Nepal’s political situation. Short texts provides essential background, otherwise the photographs speak mostly for themselves. In black and white images, he shows Nepalese people and environments in situations that are often characterized by dramatic social dynamics.
It is an insider perspective, based on the presence and knowledge. Olof Jarlbros lens captures the drama of the confrontations between protesters and police, there are pictures taken during trips in the mountain villages and visit in the workshops where they teach Maoism, pictures where you glimpse the police escorted the king’s Jaguar.