As for Daniel Lee, he is no stranger to readers in the ROC Last year at this time he had an exhibition in Taipei of photographs of the minority peoples of China's Yunnan Province, and two years ago also caused a flurry of interest with his show of "The Grand Canal Today."

Yet despite his success with these nostalgic themes, Lee generates even more interest and curiosity with his specialty--commercial photography, and especially photographing beautiful and elegant models.

Besides his photos, also dazzling are some of Lee's locations and numbers. According to reports, models who work with him get US$3,000 per day, and clothing advisers US$750 per day; and the specially designed clothes worn by his models can cost in the tens of thousands. Lee also works often with Francoise, one of the five leading makeup artists in the U.S.

But one cannot tell, from seeing Lee in his Soho home, that he is the same man about whom the dazzling stories are told.

This Daniel Lee doesn't look more than thirty, has short hair, and is extremely pale. He speaks quite slowly, and looks as if he is always pondering some great matter.

"You? Are you Maestro Lee?"

"Me? Maestro? If I were already a maestro, would I not then be finished?" He stretched out the word "finished" to emphasize that he really did care.

Lee was born in 1945, and graduated from the fine arts department of the Chinese Cultural University in 1968. After working for two years as a film art director, he went to New York and attended the Philadelphia Art College, earning a Masters degree. In 1973 he entered the world of advertising, working as an art director and director of photography. In 1980, he started his own firm, though he remained affiliated with a famous New York advertising company.

Lee estimates that New York has about 30,000 photographers, of whom about 2000 can eke out a living at it. Of these perhaps only 50 become respected, and only five can become true masters and make a lot of money. Lee counts himself within the 50 but outside the five.

For Lee there is a distinction between those Who become suddenly famous for four or five years and those who work their whole lives to earn the title "Maestro." He wants his own success to last until his later years. That is the reason why he cares about how people use the word "Maestro."

As for his work with models, Lee finds it "boring," and even "false." Lee describes the work as like trying to create a dream, and an image. The photographer's job includes trying to beguile the model into looking and doing her best. When the photographer and set are ready, and when the model has reached an emotional high, even a slight misstatement by the photographer can take the spirit out of the model.

Even the most beautiful models cannot be perfect, and their flaws cannot escape the eye of the photographer. But for the client, and professional ethics, it is the photographer's job to cover the flaws--even up to the point where the photo doesn't look like the person who was the subject!

Lee describes the job as making someone beautiful in a way that convinces consumers that that beauty is attainable. "You can't say that it's deception, but there is a little of that too." Such work is simply a job, and gives no great feeling of accomplishment.

"As for me, American society wants me to do a little commercial photography, so I do it. But I also want to do what I desire," he says.

And what does he want to do? "The Grand Canal." "Yunnan." He says, "These places are gradually changing, and many things will disappear. I believe photographers should have a duty to record them."

He also believes he should create.

Between 1985 and 1986, Lee did a series of fruit still-lifes. "At that time, I wanted to create something simple, and the most pure and simple thing is fruit." But after a year he was still unsatisfied. "I'm afraid my things were too beautiful, with too much of a sheen. How to get rid of that sheen? . . . I am thinking about it, but can't do it." But he has begun to explore other possibilities.

He took out and opened a notebook. Each page was covered with color circles and filled with marks. Lee spends much time studying the way colors change. Pointing to a still life, he explained how the various colored lights interacted to produce new color effects. "Color changes are very interesting, and I would like to shoot some busier, weightier things."

This year Lee began to photograph flowers, though he had originally feared that, like the fruit still-lifes, they would be "too beautiful." But step by step, Lee made a breakthrough.

He listens to music constantly to relax and free his thoughts. He pointed to a picture on the wall which used green and purple as base colors, was sprinkled with red carnations, and included a child's doll, naked. Lee explained "At that time I was very taken by Beethoven's Tenth Symphony. In the second movement, it's like a small girl seeing a monster. She is afraid, but wants to go nearer. As a result I then made 'Conversation Between a Small Girl and Monster.'"

Lee found that "after a time I could arrange the flowers anyway I wanted, even including dead or broken ones; later I became really daring, using different flowers, water droplets, bones, masks. . . anything."

It was during this period that Lee discovered that he had an intestinal tumor. Preparing to go in for surgery, he used a scarlet background, white bones, Buddhist religious objects, and dead flowers, to create allusions of hell and of Buddhist religious beliefs.

"Every picture has its own story," he mused. Then, as if noticing something for the first time, he said "Look! I am carrying a small 'burden.'" The four nearest pictures on the wall each included something with a Chinese flavor: operatic face painting, jade, fans. . . .

"Is this 'burden' unconscious or one that you want to carry?"

"I'm afraid it's one I carry myself. I think I am certainly a Chinese. If I have to say what ambition I have, that is my only ambition."

Daniel Lee is full of ambition. He wants to achieve full mastery of his art in his later years. Beautiful women, expensive clothes, Yunnan, the Grand Canal, are only scenery along the route. This year he is 42.

"I'm still young."

[Picture Caption]

Daniel Lee with a recent work.

From fruit and flowers to butterfly collections and artificial hands, Daniel Lee's still lifes get more and more free.

Music, works, and a camera make this corner the focus of Daniel Lee's living room.

From fruit and flowers to butterfly collections and artificial hands, Daniel Lee's still lifes get more and more free.

From fruit and flowers to butterfly collections and artificial hands, Daniel Lee's still lifes get more and more free.

Music, works, and a camera make this corner the focus of Daniel Lee's living room.