The Lithuanian-born photographer Paulius Normantas, at present living in Hungary, has gathered fame in Europe with his photo exhibitions showing Finno-Ugrian peoples, and with his book Vanishing Sources. The photographic documentation of the vanishing Finno-Ugrian peoples, began by Normantas in 1984, is approaching conclusion; concerning the small nations living to the west of the Urals the work has already been completed.

The Kuril Islands, Tibet, Sikkim, Taimyr Peninsula, Zanskar, Ladakh, India, Pakistan, Kamchatka and the Silk Road were the places for his photo explorations.

Six years ago, Normantas began his perhaps most ambitious undertaking, his "Project Tibet" and the photographic documentation of the peoples living in the Himalayan regions, following the footsteps of the Hungarian ethnologist Alexander Csoma de Körös. Since then, these projects have drawn him to the Himalayas every year.

Biokustannus Oy has published a collection of his photos from Amdo, a Tibetan region. The collection includes for instance uniquely profound pictures of the monastery life in occupied Tibet. You will find in this book reflections of Amdo Tibetans, which vary from the weariness of everyday life to the colourful yearly feast - the festival of the sacred Lake Kokonor.

At present, the life of Normantas is divided into two distinct parts: half a year, the summer season, in the Himalayas, the winter season in Europe, working with pictures, exhibitions and articles for the press.