Drik Picture Library, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Seventeen years ago, a small group of people set up a picture agency in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. It was an unlikely location and the group was made up of media professionals that other agencies did not cater for, namely practitioners living and working in the majority world. They called their agency ‘Drik’, the Sanskrit word for ‘vision’. In the years that have followed, many others from Asia, Africa and Latin America have joined the original group. The people who are drawn to Drik share a common vision of the majority world, not as fodder for disaster reporting, but as a vibrant source of human energy and a challenge to an exploitative global economic system.

Drik pioneered the introduction of email into Bangladesh and continues to take the lead in new media. It launched the nation's first webzine, Meghbarta, the web portal Orientation, and the country's human rights portal Banglarights. It also established its own broad band direct satellite link.

Drik's social commitment is central to its work ethos. A professional team staff Drik’s library, darkroom, studio, gallery and publication, multimedia and Internet departments. They provide state of the art media products for an international clientele, and also support a network of creative individuals around the world who challenge western media hegemony. Drik’s training programmes range from providing education for working class children to training the region's brightest young photojournalists through Pathshala, its education wing. Top professionals from Magnum, National Geographic, Time, Contact Press Images and other leading media organisations make up the visiting faculty.

The launch of the first festival of photography in Asia, Chobi Mela, and Drik Partnership, a global conglomerate consisting of some of the most innovative organisations in Asia, Africa and Europe, ensure that the majority world will continue to carve out a space for itself in world media.

Period

Drik Picture Library, Network Partner from 1 january 2005 to 31 December 2007. They receive an amount of 200,000 Euros for this period of three years.

Website

www.drik.net

 

 

Drik Logo

human rights by Abir Abdullah/ Drik

photo: Dominic Sansoni / Drik

Network Partnerships

The Prince Claus Fund has an extensive international network of individuals and organisations. With a select number of organisations that are active in various cultural fields around the world, the Fund has forged formal long term agreements to work together.

Each year two network partners are chosen by the Prince Claus Fund. The selection is made by the Prince Claus Fund and its international board of advisors. No open applications are accepted for this programme.
Read more about the Network Partnerships

For information on the Network programme please contact Joumana El Zein J.elzein@princeclausfund.nl