"In Search of Photos Past," which has appeared in Sinorama since January 1986, is temporarily coming to a halt. Over the past three years the series has introduced the works of thirty outstanding photographers active on Taiwan during the 1960's, testifying to their talent and skill and providing us with unforgettable memories from a vanished era. Redisplaying the spirit of reality and broadening our vision of the human world--such was the determination in which this series was written.
In searching through the works of older photographers the first thing one comes across is many portraits of family and friends, most of them intended chiefly as personal keepsakes but some of them proving to be works of real charm and depth.
Now seventy years old, born in Hsinchu, and having worked for many years in banking, the photographer Huang Huai-szu achieved a touching warmth in some of his early photos of family and friends. "Happy Singing," with its clear and simple composition and its natural and unforced atmosphere, reveals a world of parental love and care through the children's intent and joyous expressions.
"Thread in a Loving Mother's Hands" communicates the image of a mother as seen through the eyes of her children with modesty and restraint. The picture's clean, classical structure and its concentrated movement and feelings express motherly love sincerely and honestly, while the sunlight slanting through the window adds to the photo's depth and quality feel.
The innocent face of the world of childhood has always been a favorite subject with photographers. Born in Juifang and now 55 years old, Ch'en Ku-ching has worked for more than thirty years in the Patoutzu generating plant of Taiwan Power Company, engaging in photography as his sole leisure pursuit. His "Sweet Dreams" records another childhood scene: a nameless little girl has fallen asleep in weariness at the feet of a pair of door gods. The bundle in her lap and the scars on her legs seem to tell us something of the hardships that her little spirit has passed through. Compared with the completely different circumstances of the children in "Happy Singing," her un happy lot, as captured in the vision of the photographer, must move us to reflection and sympathy.
Stepping from his private circle of life into the broader world around him is a process that every realistic photographer must pass through, and life among the people and the multiple facets of society provide an inexhaustible subject.
Shih An-ch'uan, from Hsinchu, now 62, and retired last month from the accounting department at the Hsinchu Bus Co., has been taking photographs for more than forty years. His pictures of life in the countryside from the late 1950's are plain and natural and full of rich and honest feeling.
"Working the Water Wheel" shows the operation of an ancient countryside irrigation tool. The old farmer's bent back and his seemingly interminable pace express the toughness, diligence, and endurance of farmers on Taiwan.
"Back Street" is a scene from Kuanhsi thirty years ago. Viewed from today's perspective, the brick buildings, the bumpy road, and the passing women and children provoke a certain amount of reflection and nostalgia. Shih's plain approach seems the view of just another passerby rather than the contrived work of a photographer.
The figures of the two blind friends in "Companions," the young musicians in "The Ensemble," and the puppet vendor in "Salesmanship" are moving and accurate sketches from life, revealing Shih's sympathy and feeling for the common people.
Fondness for family and friends, a concern for the common people, and a love of one's native place--this natural extension of feelings is the most precious force behind a realistic photographer's work.
In "Motherly Love" Ch'en Ku-ching uses the background of spring planting to capture a warm glimpse of maternal feelings in a farm family. The mother comforting her child and the figures working the land fuse together into a single image of life, growth, and work carried on in the fields.
"Thatched House Families" shows a view from above of obliquely angled roofs in the village of Wanli. The handful of children at play waiting for their parents to return from the fields, the rich layered effect, and the rigorous composition illustrate the intimate relationship among the people, their homes, and the land.
Ch'en never enjoyed an advanced education and has worked without complaints in a rather low position all his life. Although he started out in photography rather late, he fell in love with it and advanced forward with determination.
Scattered about the island, perhaps, are other photographers like him, quietly and diligently plodding away. Year after year they rarely open their mouths, and their works are mostly buried in oblivion.
Perhaps only by constant digging and exploring can we track down more of the footprints of photography on Taiwan. "In Search of Photos Past" has not concluded. Rather it has tried to serve as a challenge to induce others to come forward and bring even more vanished images of the past before the public.
[Picture Caption]
Happy Singing, by Huang Huai-szu, 1957.
Sweet Dreams, by Ch'en Ku-ching, 1970.
Thread in a Loving Mother's Hands, by Huang Huai-szu, 1954.
The Ensemble, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1959.
Salesmanship, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1957.
Working the Water Wheel, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1959.
Companions, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1957.
Back Street, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1957.
Motherly Love, by Ch'en Ku-ching, 1968.
Thatched House Families,by Ch'en Ku-ching, 1969.
Sweet Dreams, by Ch'en Ku-ching, 1970.
Thread in a Loving Mother's Hands, by Huang Huai-szu, 1954.
The Ensemble, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1959.
Salesmanship, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1957.
Working the Water Wheel, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1959.
Companions, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1957.
Back Street, by Shih An-ch'uan, 1957.
Motherly Love, by Ch'en Ku-ching, 1968.
Thatched House Families,by Ch'en Ku-ching, 1969.
