Nagas: Hidden Hill People of IndiaPhotographs by Pablo Bartholomew

What began as a childhood curiosity, rooted in stories of his father’s encounter with a Naga tribe, has grown to become Pablo Bartholomew’s extensive exploration of what unifies this diverse community in the foothills of the Himalayas. Bartholomew, an independent photographer based in New Delhi, India, first learned about photography from watching his father Richard Bartholomew, an art critic and photographer, work. In his early teens he began to photograph family, friends, and his immediate community in the documentary tradition, and in 1975 won the World Press Photo’s first prize for his series on morphine addicts in India.

From 1975 to 1995, Bartholomew worked as a photojournalist, recording societies in conflict and transition. During this time he also held a number of fellowships, including one from the Asian Cultural Council, New York, to photograph Indian immigrants in the United States, and one from the Institute of Comparative Studies in Human Culture, Norway, to photograph the Naga tribes in India. Bartholomew is a regular photography instructor and his own work has been featured in numerous international exhibitions and published in the New York Times, Newsweek, Time, Business Week, National Geographic, and Geo.