Black, White and Color in Tamil Nadu’s Sacred Spaces

Decent of the Ganga/Arjuna’s Penance Panel, Mamallapuram (Noblex with Kodak T-Max film)(July 2009)

The natural landscapes and the complex relationships and features of South Asia’s ecology have motivated much of my photo-documentation and writing. Yet I have a deep running fascination with the architecture, temples and old buildings that dot the subcontinent. Some of this tricked down through my grandparents and parents who visited and wrote about these sites in the early and late 20^th Century. My uncle, Dr. Michael Lockwood, has been passionate about the Mamallapuram temple complex since the 1960s when he took up work as a professor of philosophy at Madras Christian College. There are no better guides to the temples than his little book: Mamallapuram: A guide to the Monuments. On a recent family trip I rediscovered the allure of these 7^th Century Pallava temples. I found the same ambiance and tranquility when I spent time in Thanjavur and Madurai’s Meenakshi temple. The following images are a few highlights taken with a digital camera and with my trusty Noblex 120 panoramic camera.