Photographer Aditya Arya and MCG will sign an MoU tomorrow for building 'The Museo Camera - Centre of Photography' in the city. The project is expected to exceed Rs 7 crore.
Do you know Aditya Arya, a resident of DLF Phase III? No? You soon will.
He, along with Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG), will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) tomorrow for building a camera museum in Gurgaon – a first in the city.
Though announced in April 2016, the project, The Museo Camera - Centre of Photography, got delayed due to issues with sanctioning of funds.
Arya has a rare collection of more than 1,000 cameras and vintage photographs from the 19th century, which he will showcase at this museum. Studio, field and portable cameras manufactured between 1880 and 1990, from brands such as Kodak, Leica, Thornton Pickard, Zeiss, Ansco and Graflex will be on display at the museum for visitors to see, and photographs of historic moments during India’s freedom movement – such as the Sino-India war, the Non-Aligned Movement and Muslim League meetings - will also be put up.
A site at Chakkarpur village has been shortlisted for the museum and renovation work on a defunct community centre is already under way. Spread over 18,000 sq ft, once ready the museum will be able to house 100 visitors at any given point and will include two galleries, a dark room and a workshop area. The cost of construction for the project is expected to be more than Rs 7 crore.
The project was widely expected to be announced during the Haryana Swarna Jayanti celebrations on November 1 by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, but had to be omitted due to his tight schedule.
“The museum is a wonderful achievement for the city, where residents can witness the evolution of photography on a large scale,” Arya said.
