September 2007 MYSTERY OF TIBET: WU SHIMIN PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION AT MANDARIN FINE ART GALLERY
Lily Pietryka

I first went to Tibet in the Spring of 2005. I was again in the Tibetan area of Aba last month on my trip to China. Tibet and Tibetan people left indelible impressions on my psyche. 

Wu Shimin’s Mystery of Tibet collection takes me right back to this faraway land that touched me deeper than any other places on earth.

"Morning Prayer" was taken early in the morning. A group of Tibetan monks were performing their morning rituals by the Yellow River. They carried their yak butter lamps, struck their brass cymbals, and murmured their mantras. It was early in the morning; there was nobody and nothing else around other than the monks. You could see far into the horizon. Nature was at its grandest, most peaceful and mysterious state. It almost felt like it was out of this world. Since the photo was taken early in the morning and the light comes from the front, there was no strong contrast, which also gives it a peaceful and tranquil feeling.

"Closer" was taken around 8:00PM. A lunar eclipse was happening that evening. The earth's shadow half eclipsed the moon on top of the hill. On the horizon, there was the eclipsed moon and the temple that houses the prayer wheel*. There were three Tibetans standing on top of the hill against the eclipsed moon, forming an interesting illusion of how close yet, how far they were to the moon. Standing there, feeling insignificant and awestruck by nature, even the unreligious are aroused with similar feelings of religion--that we are powerless and insignificant in front of something much bigger and powerful than us. There is nothing we can do but to submit ourselves.

“Listen” -- Tibetans put prayer flags on the sides of mountains, on top of roofs, and in the middle of the fields. They are prayers printed on the prayer flags. Every time the wind blows on it, it is like the prayer was said once. Tibetans put up new prayer flags for special occasions such as death, birth, weddings or nothing at all. The prayer flags weather the sun, the wind, the snow and other harsh weather elements. You can see the finger print of weather and age on them. They fade, they tear and they shred. But they are still there dancing in the wind.

Wu used a super wide scope lens for this shot to give the object in the forefront (the prayer flags) a more exaggerated feel. The flags, full of force from the strong wind, vibrant in color, have unstoppable power and life. The photo also has a very deep perspective, with the prayer wheel temple in the background and the sky and the cloud in the distance.

"Holy Mountain" -- This is a great shot of Mt. Everest. People travel far to see Mt. Everest, but often the holy mountain refuses to unveil its face. Clouds and fog mystify the world's summit. Sometimes travelers stay at the base camp for weeks waiting for the clouds to lift. In this photo, we are lucky to see the top of Mt. Everest, but a large part of the mountain was still enveloped in clouds. But regardless, our eyes go right to this mysterious mountain, the holy mountain, the top of the world. The two stone piles on each side of the photo are called "Manidui." Tibetans carefully pile stones up to pay respect for something they consider holy--in this case, Mt. Everest. They carve prayers on those stones sometimes.

From a composition standpoint, Mt. Everest was placed in the middle and the tip of a pyramid structure, symbolizing its paramount importance and power. We mortals simply stand there and are in awe.

Early Morning" is from Wu's "The Last Residence" collection. This collection reflects the lives of those who live in isolated small towns in China, whose lives are not yet touched by modernization and urbanization. It is a tribute to the disappearing heritage-- a nostalgic reflection on what the photographer once was familiar with and held dear.

The photo was taken in early morning. It is truly a classic piece of photography. The soft morning light shines upon the kitchen stove at an angle, meeting the steam coming out the steamer,  forming a soft and warm haze. The composition is traditionally symmetrical and balanced, which fits the subject matter well. It gives the photo a very peaceful and stable feeling, which is exactly the feeling Wu tried to capture in this photo. The simple, peaceful life of ordinary people in a small town in China.

“Home”-- For a lot of Chinese homes in those small towns, the two primary living areas are the bedroom and the kitchen. This is a Chinese kitchen. As we can see there were pots and pans and many objects, but everything was orderly and the atmosphere was still peaceful and balanced. This photo also achieves harmony by avoiding strong contrasts with mainly different shades of grays and black. The only things that were white were a small teapot, a cup and a white rag. The texture of the wall behind is so rich with so many shades of gray, it is every photographer’s dream.

To see more of Wu’s photography, please come to Mandarin Fine Art Gallery, 1294 South Coast Hwy., Laguna Beach, CA 92651.The Opening Exhibition is 9-22-07. For more information please call: 949 376 9608, email us at: info@mandarinfineart.com or check out the web: www.mandarinfineart.com

Lily Pietryka

Mandarin Fine Art Gallery