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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Thirty Seven: As others see me > At the Singapore River, by Ai Li Lim, Singapore, 2007
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30-AUG-2007

At the Singapore River, by Ai Li Lim, Singapore, 2007

Our group of pbase photographers was photographing a group of statues on the bank of the Singapore River, life sized sculptures of children seemingly about to jump in for a swim. Our Singapore host, Ai Li Lim, ( http://www.pbase.com/limaili ) , manages to find the moment when the angle of my arm, poised to make a photograph, rhythmically echoes the arm of the statue of a boy ready for a swim. She also uncannily matches the expressions on our faces – we are both full of enthusiasm for the moment. Her black and white rendition of it gives the immediacy of a news photo. There is a lot more going on in this image as well. She does a good job in showing how I prepare for a shoot. A bottle of water is tucked into the pocket of my photo-vest, and a rain jacket is lashed around my waist. Singapore is hot. Hydration is essential. Yet the rains can come at any time, and on this day, they did. Even the old British bridge that spans the river can be seen in soft focus in the background. It is a wonderfully expressive image

Nikon D50
1/350s f/5.3 at 55.0mm full exif

other sizes: small medium large original auto
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Phil Douglis19-Apr-2008 03:40
Yes, Jude, we do tend to keep our clothes on more as we mature. I like the contrast here too -- what is so special about this image is the enthusiasm and energy that Ai Li has found in both the clothed and unclothed participant.
Jude Marion15-Apr-2008 13:35
This is a wonderful portrait ... yes, the mirrored arm position and expression on both faces is great. I also see a sort of life progression - from carefree youth, buck naked ready for a dip in the water, to more reserved adult, clothed, intently involved in capturing a moment.
Phil Douglis16-Nov-2007 18:01
Al Li is a master of black and white imagery. Tonality and detail are always important, but can be even more so in a limited palette such as black and white.
Yiannis Pavlis16-Nov-2007 05:48
Captured with a wonderful tonal range, detailed throughout.
M Williamson Lebon16-Oct-2007 02:02
Magnificent!! V
Phil Douglis02-Oct-2007 06:10
Fascinating comment, Ceci. Once again, the power of context (or lack of context) is evident. To Ai Li and myself, the child is a bronze statue -- we were both photographing these statues along the river for more than a half hour. Yet to you, seeing that child for the first time, it might well look like he is the victim of an oil spill. Yet there I am, unconcerned with his state. I don't even see him because all of my intention is on my own photography. Ai Li, meanwhile, sees something entirely different in her viewfinder. She sees a statue, and she photographs it as a symbol of those who are "curious and eager to learn from Phil." A far cry from an "oil spill victim." In the end, it all comes down to context, doesn't it?
Guest 01-Oct-2007 22:31
This is such an odd picture! This child who is a statue is so lifelike that he appears to be covered in oil, and about to plunge into the water. I'm having trouble seeing him as inanimate. So to have what looks like an oil-spill victim right next to you, Phil, while you are so totally unconcerned about his (imaginary) toxic state, creates for me a wild juxtaposition: the white dude oblivious to an environmental tragegy. Other than this strange interpretation, it's a special shot, with the mirrored arms and poses. There just feels like such urgency in the child, that the intense concentration of the man on his camera seems out of place!
Phil Douglis01-Oct-2007 17:49
Thank you, Xin, and Denis, for adding your voices to the chorus of praise here for Ali Li's image of me and my bronze friend. Al Li is one of those photographers who seems equally at home with both sides of photography -- content and form. She is as much a graphic designer as she is a photographer. She is loves geometry -- cropping is her passion. She also is a story teller, a photojournalist. This image is a combination of both -- the echoing diagonal lines are Ai Li the designer at work. And the instant she has snatched out of time and frozen forever is the story telling side of this brilliant photographer.
Denis Vincelette01-Oct-2007 11:18
Powerful . excellent .. as always ! Congratulations
Sheena Xin Liu01-Oct-2007 02:18
I agree. As always, Ai Li's talents effortlessly show here. She seized the exact moment that made this image of Phil so unique. Ai Li, I really adore your remarkable acumen and gifts in artistic matters.
Phil Douglis30-Sep-2007 18:13
It is amazing how context can shape what we see and what we think about a picture. I saw this as an expression of dual enthusiasm. I am a photographer, the boy is having fun swimming in the river, and both of us love what we do. Yet Ai Li sees him as a symbol of all who are learning to see and I am teaching him to do so, probably because Ai Li has also been learning with me. Both visions are can be equally valid -- it all depends on the context we bring to the picture.
AL30-Sep-2007 15:29
Thanks Kal, Alina and Patricia for your kind words. And thanks Phil for liking this image. I felt that the statue is like many of us who are often curious and eager to see and learn from Phil :-)
Patricia Lay-Dorsey30-Sep-2007 06:01
Ai Li is an amazing photorapher and her unique genius shows here. She waits for the perfect moment when animate and inanaimate match up and create their own story. Brava, Ai Li!
Phil Douglis30-Sep-2007 00:28
Yes, Kal -- Ai Li has an wonderful eye, not only for the moment, but for incongruously relating elements to each other as she does here. You are right -- it seems as if I am talking and the statue is talking back as I speak.
Alina29-Sep-2007 21:40
Humorous photo. Well done Ai Li Lim
Kal Khogali29-Sep-2007 21:01
;-) Isn't her imagery priceless? I imagine that statue receiving a lesson from you in photography, or perhaps guiding your view to somthing interesting. Phenomenal. K
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