28 April 2011

The road and the miles from Dundee to Damascus

Footage of brutal Government repression of dissent may have helped shape the global perception of Syria in recent months but a very different picture of the Middle Eastern nation is captured in an exhibition at the University of Dundee.

‘Dundee to Damascus: A Tale of Two Cities’ is currently being displayed in the Tower Foyer Gallery, and features stunning black and white images of both cities captured by Dundee photographer Mandy MacFarlane. Striking views of the Tay Bridge, the McManus and other local landmarks are accompanied by scenes from the Great Umayyad Mosque and of people going about their day-to-day business at the Souk Al-Hamadiye and other parts of the ancient city of Damascus.

Mandy, who took the photographs of Damascus when visiting friends in Syria last year, has contributed 10 photographs to the exhibition, which also features a number of items representative of the two cities and their cultures.

She says the vacation, and a previous trip to Syria 10 years ago, left an indelible mark on her, and that she has watched the recent events unfold in the country with horror.

'It is an absolute tragedy what is happening in the country, and to the people of Syria, and I can only hope it is resolved soon,' she said. 'I’m not sure what’s happening in Damascus as most of the unrest is centred around Deraa but I do think of my friends and the people I met out there.

'I first visited the country 10 years ago as a guest of a student I met when working as a language tutor at Dundee University. I absolutely adore Syria and was delighted to go back last summer. It is just a beautiful country and the people are so friendly and hospitable. People will go out of their way to look after you when they know you are a foreigner.

'I did some travelling on my own when I was there last year and it was a fantastic experience to see some more of this fascinating and beautiful country. The images which feature in the exhibition are of Damascus rather than the rest of the country as I wanted to get across the idea of the two cities, both of which are beautiful in their own ways.

'I was amazed by the fact I could set off from Dundee and arrive in Damascus the same day as the two cities seem so different but in reality it’s only a matter of miles that separate us. Neither place is the most photographed compared to other cities, but both are beautiful in my eyes and I hope I’ve managed to show that.'

Mandy is a self-taught photographer who uses an SLR camera with 35mm black and white film and hand-prints her own photographs. The exhibition runs until 18th June in the Tower Building, and admission is free.

Further information about the exhibition is available by contacting Mandy on mmacf_1@hotmail.com.

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Grant Hill
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University of Dundee
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