 Ubud
has been intellectually and culturally very busy for the
past week…holding the Ubud Writers & Readers
Festival from October 11th until October 17th…
So many things going on from early morning until late
night: launching books, performances, workshop, poetry…etc…were
including some art exhibits.
Last Monday, October 11th the chic & elegant restaurant
Ary’s Warung, located in front of the lotus temple,
and which is participating to the Writers & Readers
Festival, was holding an opening of photography exhibition,
“Pilgrimages” by the photographer and writer
Jill Gocher.
The Opening started early, 5pm, and was pretty busy until
8pm; time was starting the next event, a performance named
“Katakan Padaku, Dua budaya, dua bahasa, satu cinta”
at the lotus temple, Puri Saraswati.
Jill Gocher has been a travel photographer for now many
years and more recently has started working in black and
white. All photos displayed at the two storey restaurant
are taken from some of the photographer’s own pilgrimages
to historical Buddhist sites of Kathmandu, Borobudur and
eastern Tibet, where she made friends with the Khampa
horse traders, monks and Drokpa nomads who spend their
time wandering the high plains of the Tibetan Plateau.
These once fierce warriors are all very devout Buddhists,
whose loyalty to the Dalai Lama goes unquestioned.
Jill Gocher also traveled to the holy ancient Hindu city
of Benares or Varanasi which has been in existence for
several thousand years, and to nearby Sarnath where the
Buddha gave his first teachings, an area which attracts
many Buddhist pilgrims each year.
The photographer is presenting a very noble and interesting
subject and each photograph definitely contains beauty,
sincerity and soul, either in landscape ones or in the
amazing series of portraits displayed upstairs. From the
“Two young monks”, the “Nomad Baby”
to the “Khampa Yak Riders” feels touch by
amazing smiling faces and laughing eyes…black and
white portraits that will stay in minds…
From Jill Gocher herself, “I have come to the point
in my life where I need to explore the genre of travel
photography more fully, sharpening my own vision, and
evolving a distinct style.. I am working a lot in black
and white - although color too can be wonderful. I look
for beauty in everything I photograph - whether a beautiful
composition, or light or the beauty of a face. Creating
beauty can never be boring.”
This collection of photos is an ongoing pilgrimage that
may last for lifetimes, as she seeks answers to the questions
that shape our lives.
The exhibition will run until November 30th. Definitely
worth a visit…to enjoy a fantastic trip through
historical Buddhist sites.
Ary’s Warung
Ubud main road
Ph: 0361 975 053
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