Platinum-Palladium prints: Nirvana Icons: Scared Luang Prabang

Nirvanic Icons: Sacred Luang Prabang, an exhibition of platinum-palladium prints by Hans Georg Berger, explores Theravada Buddhism in present-day Laos, offering an artistic perspective on the lives of the Buddhist sangha and laypersons of Luang Prabang. For over two decades, from 1993 to today, Berger, a photographic artist-documentarian, has created a unique photographic documentation of Lao Buddhist culture. The photographs shown in this exhibition are done in “platinum prints” format, a century-old photographic process that has been used by great masters of photography. It has been called the “king of visual print” for its exceptional refinement, its expanded tonal range, and a unique luminous quality. This exhibition combines the images of an ancient Buddhist tradition with the most subtle of all techniques in photographic print-making — a distinct combination that has never before been done in such a scale.