Jia Zazhia blogzine on poetic PHOTOGRAPHY in & near China, plus other Beauties

Nguan，1973年生于新加坡。他的镜头总是审视着世界上最拥挤的街道与公共空间中人的状态。成长于中国移民家庭的他，对中国有着特殊的感情，2008年奥运会的时候来到北京拍摄了“奥运中的北京”系列，真切的记录了当时中国人面对奥运会所表现出来的兴奋与骄傲。本文第二部分图片则另外选取了他的“东京涉谷”系列。

一、名词解释
>假——借由他人得知的真相。
>摄影——自己跟自己玩的游戏。
>诗歌——一个看似不完美却很美好的组合。
>脸——一个总是美丽的组合。
>旅行——睡去，醒来，抵达另一个地方。
>春天——好过冬天，但不及夏天。

二、问答
> 你是什么时候开始对摄影产生兴趣的？是如何开始的？
> 大学时我学的是电影制片，知道拍一部电影需要耗费大量的人力和资金时觉得很沮丧。毕业后我去了纽约，在做制片助理的间歇里，我常带着照相机在城市里晃荡。我喜欢讲述一个不必非得有开头和结尾的故事。每个看照片的人都有他自己对于“过去”和“未来”的理解。

> 提到“大师”，你马上会想起谁？请以一句话来评论他/她。
> 布鲁斯·达维森。我只在他的班里上过摄影课。他教了我许多东西，在我学习结束后的几个月后还打电话来检查我的进度。

> 你心目中的中国是怎样的？
> 我的祖父母是中国人，出生贫困，后到新加坡和马来西亚寻求更好的生活。所以从种族来讲我是中国人。不过，还小的时候，中国之于我就如一个陌生的星球，在学校我也最怕学中文。我只喜欢看英文书，看英文电视。我的祖父母和老师总是训斥我，说中国也会有腾飞的一天。2008年北京举行奥运会，我觉得我必须得去看看了。我很高兴地看到我的祖父母的话没错。不过很遗憾他们不能活着看到祖国举国欢腾的场面。我时常告诫自己，大肆张扬民族主义的人是缺乏安全感的。在“北京奥运会”系列中，除了捕捉中国人高兴的一面之外，我也想表现他们隐藏在挥舞的旗帜后可能存在的不安全感。

> 什么东西或事情让你觉得恐惧？
> 胶卷不够、光线不够、时间不够。

Nguan was born in 1973 in Singapore. His work examines life as it unfolds in the world’s most congested streets and public spaces. Born and raised up in a Chinese immigration family, he has special affection for China and went to Beijing in 2008. He finished Beijing during the Olympics series, which recorded Chinese people’s excitement and pride to Olympic Games. The second part of the images are selected from his Shibuya series in Tokyo.

1, Special Explanation
> Fake – The truth according to someone else.
> Photography – is a game you can play by yourself.
> Poetry – An arrangement of parts that shouldn’t be beautiful but is.
> Face – An arrangement of parts that is always beautiful.
> Journey – When you go to sleep and wake up in a different place.
> Spring – Better than winter but not as good as summer!

2, Q&A
> When did you get interested in photography? How did you start?
> I studied movie production in college but I was frustrated at how many people and how much expense it took to make a movie.  I moved to New York after graduation and in between jobs as a production assistant I started roaming around the city with a still camera.  I found that in many ways I preferred to tell stories that weren’t obligated to have beginnings and endings.  It’s up to each person looking at a photograph to create his own “before” and “after.”

> Speaking of “master”, who will you instantly think of? please give your comments on him/her in one sentence?
> Bruce Davidson.  His workshop is the only photography class I’ve ever taken; he taught me a lot and was so kind that he even phoned me a few months later to check on my progress.

> Could you talk about China in your mind?
> Sure!  My grandparents were from China.  They grew up in poverty and moved to Singapore and Malaysia when they were teenagers to seek a better life.  So ethnically I am Chinese.  However, when I was a child, China seemed as far away as a different planet.  In school I showed a terrible attitude towards learning the Chinese language.  I liked to only read books and watch TV in English.  My grandparents and teachers constantly warned me that I was making a mistake; they said that one day China will rise again.  Many years later, when Beijing hosted the 2008 Olympics, I felt like I had to come.  I was very proud to see that my grandparents were right.  I was sad that they were no longer alive to witness their country come together in a state of ecstasy.  However, I also reminded myself that overt nationalism is often a manifestation of insecurity.  In my series “Beijing during the Olympics” I wanted to capture the joy of the Chinese people but also hint at a possible sense of insecurity behind the flag-waving.

> Are there any things or affairs make you feel terrified?
> Running out of film, running out of light and running out of time.