Simon Norfolk
The entrance to one of the dining halls at the Sham-e-Paris wedding complex.

The entrance to one of the dining halls at the Sham-e-Paris wedding complex.

© Simon Norfolk / Gallery Luisotti

The entrance to one of the dining halls at the Sham-e-Paris wedding complex.
The entrance to one of the dining halls at the Sham-e-Paris wedding complex.
ArtistBritish, born Nigeria, 1963
CultureBritish
Titles
  • The entrance to one of the dining halls at the Sham-e-Paris wedding complex.
  • from the portfolio Burke + Norfolk: Photographs from the War in Afghanistan
Date2010–2011, printed September 2011
Place depictedKabul, Afghanistan
MediumChromogenic print
DimensionsImage: 14 3/8 × 19 1/8 in. (36.5 × 48.6 cm)
 Sheet: 15 × 20 in. (38.1 × 50.8 cm)
Credit LineGift of Morris Weiner
Object number2016.224.40
Not on view

Explore Further

Department
Photography
Object Type
ProvenanceThe artist; [Gallery Luisotti, Santa Monica, California]; purchased by Morris Weiner, Houston, 2012; given to MFAH, 2016.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
Stamped in black ink, verso, lower right: Burke + Norfolk // Photographs from the war in Afghanistan // by John Burke and Simon Norfolk // Printed by Simon Norfolk, September 2011 // An archival, digital, chromogenic print on Fujicolor Crystal Archive // Photograph by Simon Norfolk [signed in pencil over a stamped underline] // One of 104 prints in a Burke + Norfolk portfolio special edition // Edition number 1 of eight [1 is handwritten in pencil over a stamped underline]
Norfolk prints are signed and numbered on verso lower right, within artist's stamp

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.

The Sham-e-Paris (‘Parisian Evenings’) wedding hall in the Taymani neighbourhood. Common in Pakistan, these huge wedding complexes have sprung up all over Kabul with dining and entertainment halls to seat a thousand on each storey and even an on-site honeymoon hotel.
Simon Norfolk
The Sham-e-Paris (‘Parisian Evenings’) wedding hall in the Taymani neighbourhood. Common in Pakistan, these huge wedding complexes have sprung up all over Kabul with dining and entertainment halls to seat a thousand on each storey and even an on-site honeymoon hotel.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.13
Entrance to the vast City Star Hall complex of wedding halls, on the new bypass out near Kabul Airport.
Simon Norfolk
Entrance to the vast City Star Hall complex of wedding halls, on the new bypass out near Kabul Airport.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.16
Some of the astonishing new architecture mushrooming up in cities all over Afghanistan. Part Disney, part wedding cake; inspired by Bollywood but reverential to Greek classicism; it represents an architectless kind of architecture.
Simon Norfolk
Some of the astonishing new architecture mushrooming up in cities all over Afghanistan. Part Disney, part wedding cake; inspired by Bollywood but reverential to Greek classicism; it represents an architectless kind of architecture.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.36
The entrance to a small, western-backed NGO.
Simon Norfolk
The entrance to a small, western-backed NGO.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.41
An entrepreneur creates a roadside tea stall at the busy Saraj-e Shomali traffic junction. Above him are adverts for banks; a ‘win a free car’ offer from a mobile phone company and the grave of a shahid or martyr.
Simon Norfolk
An entrepreneur creates a roadside tea stall at the busy Saraj-e Shomali traffic junction. Above him are adverts for banks; a ‘win a free car’ offer from a mobile phone company and the grave of a shahid or martyr.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.32
Waiting for a helicopter, Camp Bastion, Helmand.
Simon Norfolk
Waiting for a helicopter, Camp Bastion, Helmand.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.102
Preparations for a sexy dancing and comedy show organized by the Morale, Welfare and Recreation unit at Camp Leatherneck.
Simon Norfolk
Preparations for a sexy dancing and comedy show organized by the Morale, Welfare and Recreation unit at Camp Leatherneck.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.103
Some of the palletized, instant-build accommodation blocks at Camp Leatherneck, Helmand.
Simon Norfolk
Some of the palletized, instant-build accommodation blocks at Camp Leatherneck, Helmand.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.100
Pakistani ‘jingle trucks’ end their long journey up from Karachi at the gates of Kandahar Airfield where they wait to be scanned, X-rayed and searched. Only people, ammunition and emergency requirements come by aircraft. Warlord-owned security companies protecting convoys can charge $15,000 per truck, but a large part of the fee is paid to Taliban protection rackets.
Simon Norfolk
Pakistani ‘jingle trucks’ end their long journey up from Karachi at the gates of Kandahar Airfield where they wait to be scanned, X-rayed and searched. Only people, ammunition and emergency requirements come by aircraft. Warlord-owned security companies protecting convoys can charge $15,000 per truck, but a large part of the fee is paid to Taliban protection rackets.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.77
A shelter against rocket and mortar attack, Camp Leatherneck, Helmand.
Simon Norfolk
A shelter against rocket and mortar attack, Camp Leatherneck, Helmand.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.104
Shah-do-Shamshira Mosque was built in the 1920s on the site of one of Kabul’s first mosques, the Mosque of the King with Two Swords, named in honour of an early Muslim king who died fighting Hindu invaders.
Simon Norfolk
Shah-do-Shamshira Mosque was built in the 1920s on the site of one of Kabul’s first mosques, the Mosque of the King with Two Swords, named in honour of an early Muslim king who died fighting Hindu invaders.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.5
‘Radio TV Mountain’ in the centre of Kabul seen from where the Kabul River cuts through the mountains creating the Deh Mazang gorge. In the First Anglo-Afghan War it was the site of a crucial skirmish and hasty retreat by badly outnumbered British cavalry who had blundered into the midst of a massive Afghan army.
Simon Norfolk
‘Radio TV Mountain’ in the centre of Kabul seen from where the Kabul River cuts through the mountains creating the Deh Mazang gorge. In the First Anglo-Afghan War it was the site of a crucial skirmish and hasty retreat by badly outnumbered British cavalry who had blundered into the midst of a massive Afghan army.
2010–2011, printed September 2011
Chromogenic print
2016.224.3