An exhibition by well-known Canberra photographer George Serras was opened recently by renowned photographer Jon Lewis at Huw Davies Gallery, Manuka Arts Centre in Canberra.

While spending a few months in 2011 working as a volunteer with the Luang Prabang National Museum in Laos, training staff to document the museum’s historical collection and start a digitalization program for their 60,000-image photographic archive, the Greek Australian photographer lived next to the town’s oldest temple.

This inspired his exhibition, the photo essay “Dharma: life in a Laotian temple”. “While capturing the images of the monks and novices, I realised that I was creating a body of work that reflected an intimate and genuine life within the temple, displaying simplicity, spirituality and internal beauty…The images reflect the timeless quality of life in the temple community,” the photographer writes in his exhibition statement.

“Every day after work my wife and I would go next door to teach the monks and novices English, while in turn they taught us about Laotian culture and language.”

George Serras was then invited to document the lives of the monks and novices in their temple, and was later asked to photograph ceremonies and events that were held in the temple, along with day-to-day life.

“The monks and I discussed the seriousness of the unexploded ordnances in their country [the remnants of 2,000,000 tonnes of bombs dropped between 1964 and 1973]. I explained to the monks that I would like to have an exhibition in Australia to generate money for the families of these victims, particularly children.”

In consultation with members from Unexploded Ordnance Lao (UXOLAO) and other de-mining agencies, the photographer was given a list that identified several children who could benefit from prosthetics and additional operations.

All works from exhibition are on sale, with money raised from this exhibition to be sent to a Vientiane based organisation, Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE), for prosthetic manufacturing and rehabilitation programs. George Serras is currently the Senior Photographer at the National Museum of Australia.

His exhibition in Canberra continues until October 14.