Anwar Hossain – (6 October 1948 – 1 December 2018)


“The voyage of an artist through his own land never ends, however long his wanderings be. The land has bounds, but the artist’s capacity to seek and behold is boundless.” – Anwar Hossain 

It is with much sadness to hear of the passing of our friend, the legendary Bangladeshi photographer and cinematographer Anwar Hossain. Deemed ‘the father of modern photography’ in Bangladesh, Hossain has shown future generations of photographers what constitutes modern composition in the new era of the visual world. 

As a photographer, film activist, and freedom fighter, Anwar was a man whose work transcended borders and hearts. He would complete 15 fiction and 30 documentary films in his lifetime. Anwar won Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Cinematography five times for the films Surja Dighal Bari, Emiler Goenda Bahini, Puroskar, Anya Jibon and Lalsalu. He was also author of eight major photo books.  His contemporary work created a unique visual language in the way he used natural light, which will go on to teach future generations of artists, photographers, and cinematographers the world over. 

Some of his major clients included BBC, NHK, Discovery, USAID, NASA, UN, UNESCO, UNICEF, CARE, Concern, USC Canada, Singapore Airlines, MatFilms-France.Anwar’s Collections and exhibitions include Musée Européen de la Photographie, Paris, 1993; Shilpakala Academy & the National Museum of Bangladesh, National Archives in Canada, Museums in Czechoslovakia and Romania.

Making Paris his home since 1997, Anwar taught at colleges & universities in the UK, Alexandria, Washington, US. He gave seminars & keynote speeches in UK, Brussels, Netherlands, Delhi, Calcutta, Cyprus, Paris and Rome.

A man of the world Anwar leaves behind nations who mourn the loss of a gentle kind man, a true icon in photography and cinematography.
From the team at BM, many thoughts and prayers go out to Anwar’s family and friends. His photographic and cinematographic legacy lives on. 

For more visit Anwar’s site: http://www.anwarpix.fr