Wang Hsin Photographer of Taiwan's Aborigines

Wang Hsin is well-known in photographic circles in Taiwan for her striking and revealing pictures of aborigines and their lifestyle. After majoring in college in veterinary science, she decided at the age of 28 to enter a photographic school in Tokyo to enable her to pursue her new career.

When she held her first photographic exhibition entitled "Visiting Wushe," it immediately attracted wide attention in Japan for the vividness of the pictures, and for Wushe was the scene of a massacre of aborigines after they rose up against their masters during the period of the Japanese occupation of Taiwan. As one elderly Japanese put it: "It breaks my heart to look at these pictures."

The exhibition received favorable reviews in the Japanese press. Photo Art described the pictures as "impressive photo-journalism" while the Camera Mainichi praised a "successful exhibition. "But when her teachers and friends advised her to stay on in Japan for further studies, Wang turned them down flatly. "Being a Chinese, I want to record the customs, culture and heritage of the Chinese people with my camera," she said.

She was inspired to choose aborigines as her subject partly by a book entitled "Snow Country" published by a Japanese photographer. The book has as its subject a small town to the north of Tokyo, which because of a lack of communications and a relatively low standard of living had preserved much of the old folklore and customs which had been lost in other parts of Japan. The area attracted many photographers who wanted to record this slice of the nation's past.

Another factor which influenced Wang Hsin in her decision to devote herself to photographing aborigines, was a term of duty she had at the Wushe Agricultural High School. After class, she spent much of her time with her students, who were all aborigines, and even went to their farms to help with the chores. The honesty and hospitality of the people she met made her want to record the customs and lifestyles which were gradually dying out as young people moved to the cities.

During the past five years, Wang Hsin has toured aborigine areas throughout Taiwan, with the aim of photographing all the 10 tribes on the island. She said she never encountered any difficulties in photographing mountain people, and in fact found more problems in the city. She recalled how once, when she was temporarily lost while touring the Tashe area of Pingtung County, an aboriginal girl whom she had never seen before invited her into her house for a meal and a chat with her family.

Based on her experience, Wang Hsin said a photographer must use his heart and mind systematically to interpret what he sees. With this in mind, she often uses a picture series with a theme to report on a special subject. For instance, while she was taking pictures of Yami people on Orchid Island off Taiwan's southeast coast, she put special emphasis on how they use their hands to make a living. Illustrated under this theme are such everyday activities as boat-building, house construction and making utensils, as well as catching fish and planting vegetables. She said she was trying to show how the tribesmen manage to make all they want through their own resources, with diligence and conscientiousness.

At the same time, however, she does not attempt to hide the Yamis' penchant for the luxuries of life, as shown in the way they always ask visitors for cigarettes or other gifts. She makes no value judgment, but simply shows things as they are for the viewer to ponder. With the sensitivity and fairness of a reporter and the subjectivity and creativity of an artist, she manages to create a series of enlightening masterpieces.

Wang Hsin's favorite photographer is Eugene Smith of Life Magazine, who, she said, has fully captured the spirit of human love. Smith is famous for the photographic works he produced while studying the effects of water pollution in Japan, in particular a discharge of mercury from a factory, which caused a poisoning tragedy among local inhabitants. His photographs awoke the Japanese people and the world to the dangers and problems of industrial pollution. Partly as a result of Smith's efforts, the factory in question agreed to pay 3.8 million yen in compensation.

Two other works by Smith which Wang Hsin particularly admires are entitled "Country Physician" and "A Small Village in Spain." The former describes how a physician devotes his life to taking care of the residents of a backward village, and the latter is about the tragedy of a Spanish village under the shadow of fascist dictatorship.

Wang said that she hopes some day she may be as influential as Smith, to prove the value of photo graphic reporting, and to rectify man's mistakes, particularly his in humanity. With her perseverance, confidence and personal philosophy of life, Wang Hsin has set a new model for the modern Chinese woman.

[Picture Caption]

Wang Hsin and her master pieces depicting scenes from aborigine life in Orchid Island.

Wang Hsin and her master pieces depicting scenes from aborigine life in Orchid Island.