Home and the World

Photographer Laura McPhee, noted for her stunning large-scale landscapes and portraits of the people who live and work in them, has been traveling to eastern India for over a decade. There she has devoted her keen and perceptive vision to picturing layers of history, culture, religion and class, as they appear in private heritage homes and public markets, lively street festivals, and the faces of city dwellers in Calcutta (also known as Kolkata). This exquisitely produced book features a selection of McPhee's works in and around India's former capital. Here we glimpse courtyards, living spaces, temples and altars as both vestiges of the past and integral to contemporary urban existence. McPhee's images sensitively penetrate the surface to show the blurred boundaries between social classes, the blending of public and private life, and resonances between India and other parts of the world. Also included are preface by Amitav Ghosh on the historical divisions inherent in the city's culture and on the nature of McPhee's work and an essay by art historian Romita Ray.