Michael Foley’s Walled City of Lahore

Darwaish

Michael Foley is a brilliant photographer who has captured the faces of development in images that express the strength and vulnerability of the people in struggle. He has also beautifully captured the nature and the wonder of human achievement in cityspaces and architecture. Michael loves Lahore and is a frequent visitor of his most favorite city in South Asia. He writes about Lahore: What a glorious city, Lahore – vibrant, throbbing with life and so beautiful. We present eight selected photographs of Michael Foley’s collection and invite readers to tell us what is the first thing that comes in their mind when they see each photograph.

Originally from Dublin, Ireland but currently living in Washington DC, Michael works for the World Bank and has travelled a lot to developing countries, specially South Asia, helping to establish the Global Development Learning Network.

As Michael writes: I have certain interests across a spectrum, from faces to places, and from nature to architecture. In my pictures I try to catch the strength and the vulnerability of the human spirit, the beauty of nature and the play of light on form. While photography captures the fleeting moment, it also preserves it forever, and so the snapshot of today can be the historical document of tomorrow. You could say that Photography is history, its imprints gaining value as years go by, for what it says about a time, a people and a place.

Michael’s work can also be found here, here, here and here.

Photograph Details: Photographs 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 were taken in June 2007, along the route of the “Royal Walk” in the walled city of Lahore. A cultural heritage project, funded by the World Bank, and involving the Gov of Punjab and the Agha Khan Trust for Culture is planned for the area. Photographs 1, 2, 6, 8 are from the Cooco’s Den in Walled City, Lahore. 3, 7 are from Masjid Wazir Khan and rest are taken inside the narrow streets of Dehli Gate.