Old Kathmandu Photographs

Gyan Bahadur Karmacharya was a photographer who faithfully recorded the sacred sites and festival observances of the Kathmandu Valley in the 1930s and 1940s with his camera. He also maintained a meticulously written journal. Surviving to this day are pictures that pre-date the devastating earthquake of 1934; portraits of local personalities, families and important celebrations; as well as copies of important images then in circulation of sacred texts and thankas and of the royal and Rana leadership of the time. Lost Light is seeking funding to translate this remarkable photographer’s journal and complete the digital restoration and documentation of his body of work.