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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery One: Travel Abstractions -- Unlimited Thought > The Last Emperor, Dalat, Vietnam, 2007
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28-DEC-2007

The Last Emperor, Dalat, Vietnam, 2007

The last Emperor of Vietnam, Bao Dai, ruled between 1926 and 1945. Coaxed back to the throne as a French puppet, Bao Dai devoted his time to hunting tigers and women and lived with his queen and concubines in a luxurious summer palace in Dalat. This palace remains as he left it, and among its relics is an faded map of Vietnam made from golden silk, which he received as a gift from France. It is framed under glass in the palace dining room, and I photographed it as an abstract symbol of Bao Dai’s rule. I leave as much to the imagination as I show. A shadowy figure roams through the reflected background – perhaps the ghost of an emperor, a prince or a queen. Incongruously, the most prominent detail shows people at hard labor.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/15s f/2.8 at 7.4mm iso100 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time28-Dec-2007 01:29:20
MakeLeica
ModelV-LUX 1
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length7.4 mm
Exposure Time1/15 sec
Aperturef/2.8
ISO Equivalent100
Exposure Bias-0.33
White Balance
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis16-Jun-2010 00:25
You see this image beautifully, Alister -- just as I intended it. Thank you for understanding the thought and work that goes into a photograph such as this one.
Available Light Images15-Jun-2010 04:19
A hugely thought out image. The placement of the workers in the field and the boat, juxtaposed with the shadowy figure and the patches of light is masterful. You have expressed your story extremely well, merging today with yesterday and the light with the shadows and that glorious golden color. Even the shadowy edge of the frame adds depth and context. Great one.
Phil Douglis03-Feb-2009 17:08
Thanks, Shawn, for your take on this image. The image is abstracted by shadow, which draws the eye to the strip of three light areas becoming progressively larger as we look at the photograph from left to right. As Barry Moore put it in his comment, this is an image that makes us think about its meaning. I don't see this image as busy, but I do see it as a puzzle that must be assembled by the viewer in order to make sense. As I responded to Barry, this image demonstrates one of the most important benefits of abstraction. It is not a descriptive photograph, but rather a trigger to thought, leaving room for the mind, the emotions and the imagination of the viewer to work. By showing less, I try to make this old silk map of Vietnam say more to the viewer. It is an image full of ghosts and threats -- much as the history of Vietnam itself. Of course not every viewer will see abstract images such as this in the same way. Some might not get the point at all, and that is apparently how you see it. There is no right or wrong way to view an image -- each of us will process a photograph, particularly an abstract image such as this one, in our own way.
Guest 03-Feb-2009 16:22
At first I was disturbed by the way only parts of the image are lit. I was also set back by how busy this image is. After the initial shock I force myself to look around in this image for a main subject. Maybe it is the artwork, maybe the shaddow, maybe the light itself. As a viewer I am not sure what this image is trying to say. I might just be viewing this the wrong way.
Phil Douglis04-Jan-2009 20:48
Thank you for seeing the fragility in this image, Nancy. It is the abstracting force of shadow that envelopes the tiny figures on the map, a darkness that, in retrospect, can be seen as presaging the coming of revolution, civil war and invasion to the people of Vietnam. Ironically, this foreboding icon was presented to a puppet emperor by France, whose colonization of Vietnam led to so much personal tragedy and sorrow.
Nancy Good04-Jan-2009 02:19
Such an image of fragility - both of our own attempts at holding onto whatever "powers" we seek or presume we have, and of the impermanence of material goods we label as valuable and precious. The most "valuable" aspect of the map is the representation of the people that make a country or community what it is. And people are the most fragile resource of all. Very powerfully seen, Phil.
Phil Douglis19-Jun-2008 18:15
Thanks, Evaristo, for reading this image so beautifully. It is all about the people of Vietnam, at a time when their world was ruled by others. Hard labor is a constant -- then, as well as now. I use the interplay of light and shadow with reflection to abstract it, and create the mysterious, ethereal mood you mention.
Evaristo Buendia Carrera19-Jun-2008 02:17
Yes, sometimes we are the 'medium' to express forces and messages in one image. This is mystic and ethereal image.
The forces came from the past and the message I read was: We are the people!
Phil Douglis08-May-2008 03:09
Thanks, Baine. I don't use Polarizers, largely because I enjoy playing with reflections rather than eliminating them.
In this case, the shadowy figures floating in the reflections give the image its haunted qualities.
Guest 08-May-2008 01:26
Highlighting a shadowy past, would be much with a polarized view
well seen for sure
Phil Douglis20-Jan-2008 21:34
And that is one of the most important benefits of abstraction, Barry. I see this image as not a description of a silk map, but rather a trigger to thought. The image leaves room for the mind, the emotions, and the imagination of the viewer to work. By showing less, I try to ultimately say more here. That theme runs through nearly every image in this gallery.
Barry S Moore20-Jan-2008 10:19
It is definately a puzzle to decipher the image to its fullness. A map, writting, graphics, the persons shadow and the greenery outside the room in the reflection. This image makes you think.
Phil Douglis20-Jan-2008 02:11
Both of our images use light as abstraction, mine to a greater degree than yours. Your image, on the other hand, relies on color to tell the story to a greater degree than mine. My colors only imply the golden era of Bao Dai, while your rich palette of golden reds dominate your image.
monique jansen19-Jan-2008 10:28
This reminds me of another of my Tibetan photoshttp://www.pbase.com/trevvelbug/image/88060177
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