Our first day in Karachi ended up being more touristy than we expected – our meetings for the day had to be postponed until the Friday, which gave us a chance to explore the city and orient ourselves to the culture we had just landed in. You can read more about that first day on the Church of Scotland World Mission Council Blog at www.cofswmc.wordpress.com.

Here, I’ll be sharing photos with a few stories:

The Central Brooks Memorial Church compound was our home for our time in Karachi. It was a homely wee place, with a beautiful Church in the centre of it.

Muhammed Ali Jinnah was the founding father of Pakistan, our first stop as "tourists" was to his Mausoleum. A very grand, empty building. Few people around - probrably due to the time we were there at.

Jinnah's Mausoleum is surrounded by extensive grounds, a fine place to go for a walk or grab some shade to hide from the sun!

The mausoleum has a permanent armed guard (although I"m pretty sure the 'arms' date from WWII). A mark of respect for the nations forefather.

The Mausoleum's Architecture is incredibly intricate, a very stunning building. As westerners visiting, we caused a bit of a stir - all curiosity, something we soon got used to walking around the streets!

Mohatta Palace was built by Shivratan Chandraratan Mohatta, an ambitious self-made businessman from Marwar as his summer home in 1927. The architect of the palace was Agha Ahmed Hussain. However, Mohatta could enjoy this building for only about two decades before independence of Pakistan and he left Karachi for India. He built the Palace in the tradition of stone palaces in Rajasthan, using pink Jodhpur stone in combination with the local yellow stone from Gizri.

The Palace is a beautiful building, as you would expect from a Palace in this area of the world. When we visited there was an exhibition displaying the work of Asim Butt, a local artist.

The streets of Karachi were interesting to drive through. From this sculpture of the word "Allah" to donkeys, intricately decorated buses and Transvestities, you could never be sure what you would see next!

Fiona had a bit of a soft spot for the donkeys we saw, so this photo goes out to her! We spent a lot of time driving around, so numerous photos were taken from moving vehicles - not so easy! Combine the speed, jolting and the reflections coming off the inside of the glass (In Karachi we were advised to always keep out windows up) and any photo that came out vaguely in focus and without a reflection was a huge success!

During rush hour, quite a few motorcyclists and cyclists would use the pavement instead of trying to weave through the traffic!

Delivery options for white goods are slightly different in Pakistan! Riding a bike also requires much more determination, bravery and balance!

This was one of the sadder things we saw whilst out and about in Karachi. We were just leaving a fairtrade shop and I spotted 2 boys, perhaps 8-12 years old, going through a rubbish pile for whatever they could use. :-/

Peace Out

Holy Trinity Cathedral - as most Cathedrals are, is an impressive building. We never went inside (or up the tower as I like to do). But it does give an impressive welcome to the compound as you enter the gate and look up the avenue towards it.

The Bishops Residence - another beautiful building. A warm welcome inside too. There are diocesan offices in the house as well as the Bishop and family. It transpired that I already knew the Bishops daughter and son-in-law from the conference in Nepal last year!

Rev Fiona Gardner, Bishop Saddiq Daniel, Sandy Sneddon and Chris Hoskins

Suniya and Serena-Zoe James - Suniya is one of the friends I made at the SACYN conference in MAY 2010, she also attended the Church of Scotland National Youth Assembly last September.

Bishop Danie took us on a tour of the compound - showing us the various buildings and resources in the compound

IBTIDA means “New Start” and the project works with people who have abused and become addicted to drugs attempts to give the clients just that – a new start in their lives.

Through a process of cold turkey, prayer and counselling, support over a period of several months, 40%-45% of the people who come to IBTIDA stay clean or reduce their dependency to less harmful substances.

Just across the wall from the Bishops Residence lies Trinity Girls School. The Principal, Mrs Irene Pearl, took great pride in telling us about the school and showing us around.

The girls in the school were delighted to see Fiona. In no time at all she was surrounded by a massive throng of pupils, all wanting to say hello and shake her hand.

As with everywhere else in Pakistan, the kids were wonderfully curious!

Instead of playground footie, they were playing playground cricket here! A chair instead of wickets!

We visited the Seminary in the Holy Trinity Compound, it has limited resources and a small staff, but its dedicated

Peace Out!

Leaving before the sun had risen fully, the road was dusty and full of early traveller's. It was during this drive that it occurred to me how beautiful, yet broken, the nation of Pakistan is.

Not that long ago, the flood waters that lie either side of this road covered the road.

When we arrived at the village where the Church of Scotland helps to sponsor a Basic Health Unit (BHU) we were greeted by the men of the village. These men were keen to impress upon us how little help and aid they had received. They were also keen to impress upon us how much the BHU had helped the community.

After meeting with the men of the village, we met with the women and children. They expressed the same concerns and gratitude as the men. They were a beautifully colourful group.

The children of the village we delightfully curious. Especially with regards to our cameras and flashes.

Despite the beauty of the people and their clothes, the sadness, the desperation, the brokenness was evident in their eyes.

After visiting the village of Bchaya Jogo, we returned to Thatta where we visited a Construction Training Program run by Church World Service (CWS) for young men from the area.

The training program runs for young men from the area who have no alternate employment and whose families have been affected by recent flooding in the area.

At the project, the men are taught plumbing, electrical, woodwork, building and metalwork.

The skills the men learn here will qualify them for paid employment, as well as given them the skills to repair and strengthen their homes in Sindh.

Peace Out

Tonight was such a contrast to last night (we’ll blog about today’s experiences on the World Mission Council blog later). We (Sandy, Fiona and myself) went out for dinner with 2 friends we’ve made here in Pakistan. Two incredible women: Ayra Inderyas and Alice Garrick, women whose determination, faith, strength and passion you can read about on the Council blog soon.

They took us to a highly recomended resturant called “Cooco’s Den” (number 2 in Lonely Planet’s list of places to eat in Lahore, number 8 in Pakistan). It truly was an incredible cultural experience. Firstly, it’s sits in the middle of the red light district, although this being Pakistan everything is much less obvious than in UK red light districts. The resturant itself is hosted in a Haveli, a traditional Mansion in this part of the world (often based on Middle East Islamic architecture or Mughal architecture). The owner of the Haveli, Iqbal Hussain, is an artist renowned for portraits of some of the women in the area. Some of his art is very graphic, some is very tasteful, some is very wierd. But it was kept alongside various other Asian art pieces – beautifully carved wood, incredibly vivid cermaic tiling, statues etc A very interesting exhibition to walk through to get to the Resturant.

The whole place had a very…rustic…atmosphere. And I mean that in the most positive way possible! I was enamored by the quaint sight out of the back of the building – an incredible weaving network of building, cables, streets and homes. I was wondering if the night could get any better. Was I in for a pleasant surprise! I was the last to reach the top of the stairs, having stopped to take numerous photos (shocked?). When I reached the top, I was greeted by one of the most magnificent, man-made, sights I’ve ever seen:

Badshahi Mosque

Tonight is the first time since we arrived here that I really wished I’d brought my tripod. I spent the first half an hour of being on the roof terrace finding places to steady my camera – chairs, random bits of wall, notebooks,bags, railings. I was captivated. To add to the stunning view and atmosphere, the food was amazing as well! Good food, good chat, great people and that view. What a night! Fiona kept saying that she expected it to disappear at any moment as if it wasn’t real. I had a very surreal moment thinking “Am I really here? How is this happening to me?”. It all felt so unreal, so incredible.

We were all struck by that contrast tonight. The contrast of 1 night breaking our hearts with a beautiful, but melancholy family, the next night experiencing the direct opposite end of the spectrum in Pakistan. We all felt that it was good to get a bit of a lift after last night, which is great for us, but what about that family? I’m sure their food and their view wasn’t as esquisite as ours. Is it right for us to enjoy such things on this kind of trip? I don’t know. On one hand, it would be a shame to travel this far and not take note of some of the finer, positive, rich parts of the culture (if we make sure to remember the context in which we are experiencing them). On the other hand, there is so much need, so much want, so much injustice, so much inhumanity in this land. It is a dilemma, with no easy answer. Because these cultural experiences do help to enrich our understanding of the whole culture. How? What connection does a 400 year Mosque have to anything else we’ve done? Everything! Set aside the biggest connection – the tension between different faiths – and you have the fact that this is a land with thousands of years of history, rich history, diverse history. The Christian community in Pakistan is a vital part of that history, but to truly start to understand the current context, we must be aware of what went before.

Now I know that what I’ve written sounds an awful lot like I’m trying to over-reason our experience, but it is more than that. Perhaps I am trying to assuage some feeling of guilt for enjoying the experience, not perhaps, I am. I do have some guilt that I can enjoy these beautiful places and experiences whilst others cannot. Is that wrong? One of my great passions is to travel, to explore different cultures, to experience a few of the incredible things this World, this life has to offer. Is that wrong? I am here for a specific purpose, to take pictures, gather stories and encourage council use of social media. I have done that, I think well, is it ok to, when there are no projects to visit, people to meet, that I (we) take advantage of the amazingness of where we are? The official part of the trip is THE most important part of the trip, it is the part that we put most focus on, most effort into. And yes, it is draining, we’re generally on the go from 7/8am until, well now (1am). I don’t know what to think :-/ I know that I have been incredibly fortunate to be able to travel to places like and hear such moving stories directly from the people involved. I am blessed for that, and I pray I have blessed through that.

I’m not sure how to view, to judge,  this evenings experience (ethically). It was an amazing experience, one that a few years ago I would never have dreamed would come to me. One thing that I do know for sure is that it once more brought to mind the beauty and brokenness that exists in Pakistan (in so many countries). So many of our experiences here have been a mixture of beauty and brokenness, some have been pure beauty, some pure brokenness. There is so much that needs done in this World, so much that we have to pray for, to praise for, to persevere through, to have faith for/ through. But prayer is where we must start.

Peace Out

I got very frustrated with myself on Thursday. We were out visiting projects in Thatta and Badin, in the Sindh province. Areas affected by flooding this year and last.

One of the places we visited was a village called Bachyo Jogo. A village of maybe 15 huts, perhaps a population of 90 (these numbers are very rough, not exact!). About 50 people in all came to see us.

My job was to note stories and take photos. Both of which I managed. But, I’m not happy with the results of my photography. The images are good, exposed well, composed fine. But none of them really stand out to me. I had high hopes for what the results would be and didn’t hit them.

Some people will say the photos are great and I should be happy. But I’m not. I know I can do much better, and it highlights, to me, reminds me, humbles me into remembering that this visit was my first ever of this type. It was my first chance taking photos in this setting. So why should I expect my photos not to reflect that!? I know as I gain more experience I will improve, but it frustrates me now that my pictures aren’t as good as I’d wanted!

There are a few challenges about taking photos out here in Pakistan. Firstly, the biggest problem is the light. Being so far south means that the sun sets very quickly and early. This gives less daylight hours to use. The light is also extremely harsh between 10amish and 4pmish, it glares on everything, creates very harsh shadows and flattens everything. It keeps photographers on their feeting and constantly trying to adjust settings and lighting to make it more flattering.
Secondly is the time span. We were in the village for less than an hour. To get the kind of images I’d hoped to, I now know that it involves spending more time in a village getting to know the people, getting comfortable with them and allowing them to get comfortable with me. But I won’t always have the time, so I know within myself thay I need to cut out those brief seconds of hesitation and just do my job.

It’s good to be reminded of my shortcomings, to not let me become big headed!

I find it hard while we are travelling, driving in our cars. We drive past so many excellent photo opportunities. But I know we have little time to stop!

This week I will have the chance to spend longer at the projects we are visiting, and I’m confident my photos will reflect that increased comfort around the people I’m with.

Peace Out!

“Although Asim Butt used the camera as a tool with which to build the theme and composition construct of his painting, he relished the idea that the camera could see beyond the confines of the apparent and superficial and reach into the realm of inner consciousness”

Askm used his camera sometimes in place of, or to supplement his sketch book. What intrigues me about this statement is last phrase. I’m not sure if I agree with it, if I see that as part of my photography, but it’s most certainly making me think.

The poem is:

“I paint because it allows me to stare shamelessly,
To be able to flesh out an idea, emotion or commit to an image,
a shadow of the world around me.

I paint because there is a spill-over of energy within that must find form or else it will haunt and twist me.

I paint to commit to an act of magic and pleasure,
for myself, for the love of my audience,
and for an abstract notion of my myse’s gaze.

I paint to validate mysrlf
And to discover surprises within and without.

I paint as a penance for my inadeqaucies.

I paint to understand the World around me and to own and disown what I desire and dislike about it.

I paint as a political act:
to express my power over power larger than myself.

I paint to create what it is I want to see,
to fill an absence in the World”

Again, I’m not 100% what I think, but I am provoked to though, perhaps to flesh out my own version of the poem : “I photograph because….”

Art was certainly not a side of Pakistan I expected to see, and perhaps such exhibitions aren’t common, buf this is a nation who are not shy at expressing themselves, especially not with colour! I think art is a window into a society, a culture, so I am glad we were able to experience it to this extent!

salam-o-alekum

Anyway, let’s focus on Pakistan. If you read my blog regularly, or have dug through the archives, you will have noticed 2 major happenings in my life. The first occured in April, when my Wife and I opened a photography and art business together. The Second occured a month later, in May, when I was accepted onto the Church of Scotland World Mission Council.

So how do these 2 occurences add up to me being in Pakistan?

With Hoskins Gallery I am the photographer, we mostly aim to work in Portraiture and Weddings over the initial start up period of the business, but eventually we want the main focus of the photography side of things to be in Humanitarian Photography. Why? It all started 7 years ago at CLAN gathering. It was prophecied over me that I would servevGod with my hands. When this prophecy was spoken, I had barely picked a camera up before, so that being the service was the last thing on my mind. Rather, I thought, assumed it was all to do with sports – specifically American Football, in a Youth Ministry settibg, that would be the outcome of the prophecy. 7 years, a lot if hurt, pain, determination, soul searcjing and travelling later, I find myself inextricably drawn towards Humanitarian Photography. I love photography, love capturing moments in life that are emotive; love photographing a besutiful sunset or a stunning panorama. On top of this, because of my faith(and by this I mean that my sense is derived from my faith, not that without faith you cannot rail against injustice!), I have a strong sense that there is a lot of injustice and need in the world and I feel called, drawn, motivated – whichever word fits best, to use my passion for and skills in photography to document/ highlight/ advocate for the people in the world affected by these issues.

My being on the CofS World Mission Council allows me to become more educated in, and in turn educate others in, the nature of the need and injustices so many face. It also allows me a place to offer up my photography (and also my social media skills) in order to advance the work of both the World Mission Council and myself in this field.

Whilst we are in Pakistan, we will visit places and projects that will test me like I have never been tested before – photographically, spiritually and mentally. I will meet people (indeed I already have) who have been through unimaginable terror and horror.

One place in particular we will visit where I know I will be stretched is Badin. A town in the Sindh Province that has bedn devestated, again, by flooding this year. I know I will see and meet people in incredibly desperate situations, knowing that there us nothing I can do to help them, except for my job. To document, through photography and recording (writing) their testimony, the story of how they came to be where they are. Hos does that help someone whose home, whose life, has been devestated by flood, disease and starvation I hear yoy ask? Because stories capture peoples attention, their emotions, their compassion. By listeninv to storues told to me and photigraphing those affected, I can bring back raw materials that can be developed into resources to encourage prayer, action, advocacy and many other things.

That is why I’m in Pakistan, that is why I feel so drawn to Humanitarian photography. It is the small differenxe that I can make.

salam-o-alekum

Flights over were fine, the 8 hour wait at Dubai provided time for some uncomfortable sleeping and the security staff at Karachi Airport seemed to be very interested in the fact that I shave my head!

Once we got out if the airport, we were picked up by Johnson – a driver that the Church World Service (CWS) have provided for us here in Karachi. Who then took us to the CWS offices in Karachi, here we met Jennie, Audrey, Shama and many more, who’s names I have already forgotten :-/ At the offices we were given a brief rundown of what they do here, and worldwide. We were also treated to a gorgeous chicken curry and Dahl lunch, after enjoying some sweet chai tea. CWS gave us a brief security briefing for our trip – where to avoid/ what to avoid doing/ what to do in the unlikely event something does happen. In reality it put us, well, me at the least, at ease and confirmed suspicions that Pakistan isn’t as dangerous and unstable as Western media often makes it out to be (thats not to say that some areas aren’t dangerous and unstable or that there is not an inherent fragility about the country). This security briefing also allowed time for questions and some cultural do’s and don’ts!

The people here are all very friendly, which is good given that, being 3 very white westerners in a sea of Asian faces does mean we stick out a wee bit in a crowd! We went to a market this afternoon to get Fiona some culturally appropriate clothes for visiting various projects over the next few days. That was an experience! Jennie, a CWS staffer, came along to help (with what to buy as well as to make sure Fiona wasn’t fleeced!) was amazing! Guiding Fiona away from what were (apparently) Westernised version of the traditional dress, and making sure it was all done at a good price!

I haven’t taken many photos yet – it’s not a great idea for me to walk around the streets with it, advertising my expensive camera as a tempting target for any opportunists around! I have taken a few in the compound we are staying in, but I won’t really get going with it until we start visiting projects.

We were meant to meet the local Bishop tomorrow, unfortunately the volume of work he is dealing with has meant our meeting has been postponed until Friday, not sure what we’ll be doing yet, possibly some cultural learning!

There is so much here that reminds me of Nepal – the sounds, the smells, some of the sights. Its a very colourful place, the buses have to be seen to be believed! Just driving and walking around reminded me of why I love to travel – the new sights, smells, people to listen to and learn from, the new way of life to watch and learn from. Awesome.

I’m looking forward to what else we’ll see and experience on this trip. It’s guaranteed to be a mind altering trip!

Peace Out! (salam-o-alekum: which means “Peace be with You”)

Peace Out

For the last 6 years, since Linda and I got married, I’ve been employed in full-time Christian Youth Ministry. It’s been….an experience. Plenty of highs and lows, unfortunatley more lows than highs. But thats chat for another post, tonight I’m focusing on the new thing God is doing with Linda and I.

7 years ago, at CLAN Gathering I was prophesied over, the prophecy was that I was going to serve God with my hands. At the time, I was still planning on having a long career in youth ministry, with a focus on sports ministry – so I assumed the hands was to do with American Football! Then, 4.5 years ago, January 2007, Linda bought me my first digital camera, a Fujifilm S8000. She bought me it at a point in my life where I was starting to struggle with depression, a struggle that hasn’t long ended. It was during this time that I threw myself into photography, it was an escape, a way for me to block out everything. Within a couple of years, I progressed from my Bridge camera onto a DSLR. As each day has passed, and passes still, I fall more in love with photography. I grow in my understanding and technical ability, I grow in how much I understand how little I know and still need to learn! I’ve gotten to the point where all I can imagine doing is photography. I’m always dreaming up new projects to do, new places to go. Always reading about new techniques, new challenges, new ways to do things. I’m sure I drive my friends and family nuts at times talking about and constantly taking photos! One hing that has emerged from it all, that is very apparent to both myself and Linda, is that I have a passion for Humanitarian photography, for photography that tells the story of real people’s lives and moves others to react to it. Photography that is powerful, meaningful, striking, beautiful, challenging, heart-breaking and intimate. Photography that will make a difference.

That’s the abridged version of the last 6 years, which brings us to the point of this post.

Hoskins Gallery.

In April this year, Hoskins Gallery was created. Linda and I had both gotten to the point where the stress, depression and dissatisfaction I was facing in my various roles in Youth Ministry was just entirely too consuming. It was time for me to move on, I was burnt out, nothing left to give. We’d been contemplating opening a business together for a while, and we got a good kick in the right direction. Linda still had a few months to go at Uni and that was without doubt the most important thing to be focused on, but at the same time, we felt it was time to take a step of Faith and venture into the unknown.

Hoskins Gallery is a photography and fine art business. Obviously, I am the main photographer. Linda is the creative director. As well as producing prints (she has a degree in printmaking from Gray’s school of art) Linda plays a vital role in the photography side of things, helping to arrange poses/ props etc so that I can have my eye on the shutter the whole time to make sure I don’t miss the moments or the light.

As we start out, our main focus is on wedding and portrait photography, primarily based in Aberdeen and the surrounding area, although more than willing to travel! These two areas are where the biggest market is and where we think it is right for us to start to get our name known. Currently, we are a purely mobile service. Based online at www.hoskinsgallery.com we have a portable studio that fits in almost any house. The dream, however, is to, as a business, own a property where we would have a studio for portrait and lifestyle photograhy as well as a studio for Linda to create her artwork from. We would also like a gallery space within our premises, where we can have exhibitions of our work, the work of peers in the photography and art world as well as up and coming artists/ photographers. One area of photography we, I, are very keen to expand into is the Humanitarian field. I don’t think I could have picked a harder area of photography to aim for. An area where you need to take exceptional photographs (I have a way to go yet) but you also need nerves of steel, on top of a compassionate heart, to be able to focus on and process the realisities of human life you will invariably come across. I anticipate it to take around 5 years, if not longer, to break into this field. Partly because of the growth I need to do to be better enabled to work in this field, but mostly because of how long it will take to buld a good portfolio in this area. That being said, my first trip where my role is that of a Humanitarian photographer starts on Monday. On Monday, I leave for Pakistan for 11 days with a small group from the Church of Scotland World Mission Council. It’s my first trip in this role, butnby no means the first step on the journey.

All in all, despite the weekly uncertainties, this is an incredibly exciting time for Linda and I. We hope that we can rely on you for your prayers and support (perhaps your business too!?). And I look forward to sharing more of this journey with you on my personal blog here, and our busness blog on our business website.

Peace Out