Shems Friedlander’s name is associated with Sufism, whirling dervishes and spirituality. In any medium Friedlander chooses, whether documentary film, photography, writing or painting, his audience immediately recognizes his passion for the Sufi religion and his ability to capture its beauty through any creative outlet.
The American University in Cairo’s Sony Gallery recently witnessed a warm opening reception of his latest art show entitled Fragrance from the Sufi Garden , where visitors gathered to see photographs by Friedlander, also a professor at the university.
The exhibit features black and white photographs Friedlander took in the 1970s in Konya and Istanbul, although at the time they were taken in color.
“I recently went back to my negatives and started making prints of some images I had never printed before and realized there is a body of work I had never really shown in one grouping, he said.
Some of the pictures currently on display where shown in a large exhibition at the Gezeira Art Center earlier this year. The exhibition also included some of Friedlander’s paintings and drawings. Great response and high demand prompted him to move forward with the present show at the Sony Gallery focusing on photography.
Among the guests at the opening was American Ambassador Francis J. Ricciardone.
“The photographs are very evocative and very beautiful, he said, adding that he has traveled to both Konya and Istanbul, first as a tourist and later as a diplomat.
Most of the pictures are close shots of the dervishes during the zikr (remembrance) The camera s intimacy with its subjects allows Friedlander s photographs to capture the detailed expression of the dancers as they let go together, repeating the name of Allah and becoming entranced in their ritual.
“I was actually in the middle of the zikr circle. I would just take my camera out and film them, said Friedlander. “I had been there a long time and they knew me. I took one or two frames and put them in my pocket. Otherwise you can never get that intimate.
The exhibit includes portraits of different individuals such as a calligrapher and a shoemaker, who had their own place in the process of the dervishes, whether to write something or make them shoes.
Ambassador Riccardioni said: “People live in a very peaceful spiritual way even in their ordinary life. The photos capture that.
Besides being aesthetically beautiful, Friedlander’s work is always takes you on a new journey.
“Art is a universal language that can be a bridge to understand the diverse cultures of the world – a language that can merge the traditional and contemporary in such a way as to make it a meaningful experience in the world today, said Friedlander.
Fragrance from the Sufi GardenThe Sony Gallery for PhotographyThe American University in CairoUntil March 28 2007
