Each photograph comprises a series of photographs taken in the exact same location over the course of one day. "One day might seem short, but inspired by the Buddhist belief behind William Blake’s poem ’To see a world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower’, I thought that one day of photographing will hold both certainties and uncertain coincidences," says Chunlin. With the goal of exploring the changing face of China through the observation of its people, Chen Chunlin started this photographic project in his hometown of Chengdu in 2003 and soon curiosity took him to other cities in Sichuan and later to other provinces and remote areas around China. As the Chinese title of this body of work implies (’Xiang’ 相) Chunlin’s work is about the process of mutually interacting with people in a certain place and time, using photography as an almost scientific tool of measurement to take a reading of the ’’face’’ of China. In this sense, his montages become an anthropological study, or a more mystical ’’face reading’’ of the face of China as also implied by the Chinese word ’’面相’’ (mian xiang). Furthering this sense of study is the use of a white backdrop that temporarily isolates the subject from their environment, facilitating a more focused observation, while allowing for a more fair comparison under controlled conditions. At the same time, the photographer allows us a glimpse into the physical appearance of the surrounding environments - often seen around the edges of his studio backdrop (tree branches, a wide lane or the ocean) - to give some indication of the local context and landscape. The large scale of some of these photographs, which stand at 1.8 meters tall and 3 meters long in the gallery installation, give the viewer a sense of intimacy and bewilderment at the often-overlooked people that pass before us each and every day.
For additional information, please contact m97 Gallery at: info@m97gallery.com or by phone: (+8621) 6266.1597. Tuesday-Sunday 11am-7pm (Monday by appointment only).
上海m97画廊深感荣幸举办陈春林个人摄影展---"相"（一日之鉴）。该展览主题名为"相：一日之鉴"，为一系列人物肖像蒙太奇摄影作品，均于某一天中相同的地点所拍摄，记录了摄影师与其生活圈的对话交流，以及被镜头无意捕捉到的无名路人。该摄影展将于2008年6月28日开始展出，m97画廊将于6月28日星期六从下午4时至晚上7时为艺术家举办一个开幕接待仪式。
"一天虽然短暂，但如禅语所言："一沙一世界. 一花一天国"（’To see a world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower’）这一天的生成，有它偶然和必然的因果," 陈春林说。为了通过捕捉普通人的瞬间来发现并记录中国的面貌变迁，陈春林2003年在家乡成都开始了这段摄影主题之旅，之后基于其他机缘，他探索到了四川省的其他城市乃至中国的其他省份。春林的工作便是关于如何在特定的空间和时间里有机的与人进行互动，用照相机这种现代的手段记录并描绘出了当今中国的"面貌"。从这个层面上而言，他的摄影剪接课题也在转变为对人类学的研究。更进一步地说，该项研究便是用白色的背景布把一个主题从纷繁的环境中凸现出来，进行对比和表现，同时，摄影师通过暴露一定的摄影棚（树枝，宽宽的小巷或是大海）和它所处的地域和景观，把观看者有机引入画面中的环境。其中某些大型的彩色作品高达1.8米，在画廊中展出时，给观赏者强烈却又亲切的视觉冲击，仿佛亲历其中，见证我们每天都可能见到的擦肩而过的形形色色的路人。
陈春林生于四川省，后于中央美术学院深造毕业，现在四川成都居住工作。
如果您需要更多相关摄影作品，约见或者其他媒体需要，请联系m97画廊: 请电邮至： info@m97gallery.com 或者 电话至(+8621) 6266.1597. 开放时间：星期二到星期天 上午10:30 - 下午18:30
