Black and white symphony

by Mahes Perera

France's celebrated Notre Dame Cathedral was centre stage at the Lionel Wendt Art Gallery last weekend when the Embassy of France in Sri Lanka and the Alliance Francaise de Kotte presented Nostalgie 4 - Notre Dame de Paris, an exhibition of black and white photographs by well-known media personality Kumar de Silva.

The ambience was totally complementary with candles flickering in tall and old gold candle stands, rustic wooden benches for guests to sit on, and the walls bathed in pools of light.

Track lights focused on the wall spaces in between the photographs radiated an ethereal glow on the displayed images.

And when the Revelations led by Sanjeew Jayaratnam began singing the Gregorian chants and wound themselves through the guests, it was magical, to say the least.

Question: Was there any particular reason for you to choose the Notre Dame Cathedral?

Answer: I chose France's Catholic treasure in celebration of the 850th anniversary (last December) of the commencement of its construction in 1163 during the reign on King Louis VII. My focus this year was daily life unfolding around the Cathedral in the changing Parisian light - the tourists, the bird sellers, the river Seine, the strollers and even the gargoyles. It is an intense microcosm of the world out there.

The Notre Dame Cathedral has inspired mankind in different ways. The French novelist Victor Hugo wrote The Hunchback of Notre - Dame (1831) which has spawned numerous film versions, television serials, animated cartoons, ballet music and radio plays. More recently at the turn of the century was Notre-Dame de Paris, the France - Canadian hit musical based on Hugo's novel with music composed by Richard Cocciante and lyrics by Luc Plamondon which has had resounding successes since its debut in Paris.

"All proceeds from the sale of the limited edition photographs are being donated to a member of Sri Lanka's media fraternity - photographer Rukshan Abeywansha who has begun a long process of recovering in hospital after life-saving surgery to a ruptured spine following a motor accident" said Kumar de Silva.

The exhibition is now on at the Alliance Francaise de Kotte at 11, Keppetipola Mawatha in Colombo 5 and will close at 5 p.m. today.