In 15 years, nearly 100,000 photos, he took the most beautiful "photo" for the ancient villages of Hunan

Tan Jianhua has seen many buildings. Not only that, as the former president and professional photographer of the "Chinese and Foreign Architecture" magazine, he is familiar with the school's genre and various theories. When he retired, he found that the most beautiful building in his heart was the little Xiangnan village who lived as a child.

Xiaoqiao, flowing water, others.

"It is written in Yuanqu. It's really like that, a painting." When he described, his index finger bounced lightly in the air, like pressing the shutter.

The worship of the beauty of the ancient villages and the nostalgia of the country always make people feel itchy and want to do. He decided to set off, walking in Hunan landscapes, and visiting the ancient village of Xiaoxiang. Use your own lens to find, discover, and record.

An old man, a backpack of more than 30 pounds, a 15 -year trip. He ran over 80 counties and more than 800 ancient villages in Hunan Province, and took nearly 100,000 photos.

Guiyang Yangshan Village

From July 16th to September 16th, his efforts were gathered as "Xiaoxiang Ancient Village Entering Painting · Hunan Ancient Village Beauty Exhibition", exhibited in the exhibition hall on the second floor of the Changsha Library; it was assembled as two large documentary albums of "Hunan Soul".

The exhibition is divided into six parts of ancient villages, murals, stone carvings, picons, calligraphy, and art. A total of 138 photography and calligraphy works vividly reproduced the natural scenery, architectural characteristics, folk customs, and historical and humanities of Xiaoxiang ancient villages.

The large -scale Zhanggu Ying Village, the goulan village of the natural landscape, the cool lantern village covered by white snow ... The village village village has its own beauty; The exquisite corner eaves ... condenses the traditional aesthetic taste.

Huxi Village, Lanshan County

Dawa Chuan Village murals in Xintian County

There are also life scenes and folk festivals in the ancient villages, allowing the audience to be moved by those rural pictures and emotions that are gradually gone.

Ancient Well of Yongxing Banliang Village

In order to point to a picture, Tan Jianhua was endless. We were surprised to find that he clearly remembered the story behind each photo, and even the weather at the time and the person he met, and the family legend he talked about remembered. "I know much more than the young people in the village." He laughed.

Old man in Nakada Village, Changning

Long Drum Drum in Jingtouwan Village, Jianghua

He found that in the village, many elderly people wanted to take a photo of the funeral. So, every time he arrived in an ancient village, he invited the village chief to invite the elderly over 80 years old to take pictures. After returning to the city, he printed it at his own expense to send it to the elderly. In the past ten years, he sent more than 3,000 photos before and after.

"This one has died, the one is also ..." he pointed to the old man in the photos.

The village accelerates the withering of a generation.

With text, photos, and videos, he will continue this contest against forgotten.

Time is urgent. "My steps are faster, faster," he said.

At the exhibition site, taro dialogue Tan Jianhua.

Tan Jianhua: The old house in Hunan is one of the important source of Huxiang culture

On the fourth day of the New Year, Tan Jianhua went over the mountains and rolled in Fenghuang Lantern Village. At that time, the village had not been connected to the highway.

"Lilk"

Xiang Yu: When did you start shooting ancient villages? What is the motivation to start shooting?

Tan Jianhua: I started shooting when I retired at the age of 55. In fact, I started taking photos and did not take this. Instead, I ran to all parts of the country to take the scenery. Tibet, Xinjiang, all went. Later, I felt that I still had to take some humanities. At that time, two themes were considered, one was shooting eight hundred miles, but this (subject matter) was too big. Another idea is to shoot things that disappear and disappear and are valuable.

My original intention of shooting the ancient village was from a complex -I was a child who grew up in the countryside. My initial memory was in the countryside, those old houses -horseshop walls, corner eaves, those narrow alleys ... Another shooting motivation is that the urbanization is developing rapidly now, and many old buildings have disappeared. I think I see. It's distressed.

Xiang Yu: You choose this subject because of "valuable". What do you think of value?

Tan Jianhua: The greatest value is that it is the culture of Hunan. Hunan architecture is a concrete of Huxiang culture. And through photography, we can make the contour of this figurative more obvious and highlight its own characteristics.

You see, the southern and Hunan regions, it is structured with horses and horses, and the hall number is the structure of the western Hunan. The diversity of architecture makes it different from other provinces.

Another valuable place is that these ancient villages are the cradle of humanities in the lake and Xiang, and we need to continue and inherit. So many powerful characters in Hunan have come out of the countryside. For example, Chairman Mao, Zeng Guofan, Wang Fuzhi ... These are the representatives of Huxiang Culture. They all came out of the villages. Therefore, these ancient villages are "cradle of Huxiang culture", which is not excessive at all.

Xiang Yu: Because you have worked in the construction of "Chinese and Foreign Architecture" for many years, did you start shooting the theme of ancient villages from the perspective of architecture? Then when you really embark on this road, are you different from what you expected before? Because building it condenses thoughts, and there are elements like calligraphy and art, it carries a lot of things.

Tan Jianhua: Yes, I first considered architecture at the time, such as the layout of the village. If there is no building, it cannot support the cultural system of the ancient village. My first exhibition hall was to show "the beauty of poetic habitat". Hunan villages all have mountains and water, small bridges, and ancient wells. Like the ancient bridge in my hometown, there is a history of two hundred years. There is an ancient well next to the pine cypress trees, where people live there. Therefore, the ancient villages of Hunan are like Ma Zhiyuan's "small bridge, flowing water, others", and they are all vivid paintings.

Because the interpretation of the concept of Feng Shui in Hunan is very clever, reflecting a concept of harmony with the natural environment in harmony with the natural environment. For example, the Zhou Family Courtyard of Lingling Yantou, which is the shape of six buildings like Beidou Seven Stars.

"Let them live in my lens"

Xiang Yu: Many ancient villages are located in is blocked. How do you shoot? Will there be like -minded friends in the middle?

Tan Jianhua: I started shooting since 2006. The first travel was mainly bus or motorcycles, carrying a two or thirty pounds of backpacks everywhere. When you are sleepy, you can support a tent, borrow a grass cushion from the villagers, and find an old temple to make a house. Once I slept next to two coffins, my friends said that you are so courageous. In the past, some villages had no roads, and I walked in alone.

Later, some aerial drones, I started driving by myself. I have 3 cars, 3 drones, and 5 cameras. I didn't care about costs. The drone hit one and flew away. I basically hollowed out everything I had. As a working class, I have no savings. In the past few years, I will bring a few packs of instant noodles, eat a bag of hungry, and now sleep in the car.

During this period, there were also a few friends who had followed me, but did not last long. It is really too hard and difficult to shoot this subject, and it is also a great challenge to the body and spirit. I repeated a maximum of 10 places 10 times, just to squat to good weather and shoot the best results. A teacher took a picture with me for two years and couldn't stand this suffering. His original words were: Go out to take a week with you, (tired) to sleep at home for 15 days. Finally, I exited.

Xiang Yu: Have you ever encountered some help during walking, or what impressed you particularly?

Tan Jianhua: When shooting Xie's big house in Lianyuan City, I made a low blood sugar and very uncomfortable. The people in the village quickly took brown sugar water for me. I also asked me, "What do you like the most?" I said that I like sweet potatoes the most, they immediately cooked sweet potatoes with a high pressure cooker and cooked eggs deliberately. When I was shooting the Zhou family courtyard, I walked at night, and the villagers took the flashlight to take a long time. These things really moved me.

Xiang Yu: You will often take pictures of old people in the village. What kind of thought is this? Is this record of multiple directions for ancient villages has been obliged to be regarded as a obligation?

Tan Jianhua: My old lady told me when I was a kid. It would not be easy to give you birth. What you have to do in the future must contribute to society. It happens that I have this camera in my hand now, so use it more good things. I will ask the village chief to invite the elderly over 80 years old and take pictures of them. The effect is better, so I will print it for the elderly for free. In the past ten years, more than 3,000 photos have been sent before and after. Many old houses in the village hanged the old people I took.

Just like Shen Congwen's "Border City", these ancient villages are not only landscapes, but also the humanistic style unique to the villagers. They disappear too fast, and they are something that cannot be copied, very precious. I just hope that my footsteps can be faster and let them live in my lens.

Some elderly people in Suining County, Shaoyang City, will sit around the stove with the long smoke rod in the winter with the long smoke rod. This is a wonderful scene, but now the old people are gone, and those smokes do not exist.

"Find the coexistence point with ancient times"

Xiang Yu: Have you tried to rescue these ancient villages?

Tan Jianhua: When I was in Ning Yuan, I saw a large house in Huangjia. It was a very old building. I found that there was a 1/4 long crack on its wall, so I told the village cadres that you would be rescued quickly. If you don't make up for it, you will fall off. Now hurry up and report to the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau.

In the process, the wall with a crack fell off, and I was distressed. But after a few years, I went to see it again, this time it was repaired. At present, this Huangjia house is evaluated by researchers in colleges and universities as a model of residential buildings in the economic production model of southern manor -style small farmers in my country. It is listed as a provincial cultural relics protection unit and is very valuable.

Xiang Yu: Many ancient villages are scattered, and its protection does face great difficulties. What do you think of this problem?

Tan Jianhua: I think the ancient villages that are valuable, deep in cultural heritage and suitable for preservation still need to be protected. We must be good at evaluating, protect those villages with practical cultural significance, and give protection funds to the cultural relics that they really need.

As for the transformation of traditional villages in the process of modernization, there will definitely be destructive ingredients. It is a contradictory thing. On the one hand, social development, the living environment of the people must be improved. In the past, the old house was not so convenient and comfortable to be transformed or reconstructed; The monuments of value are still not protected too well, and the policy is not perfect. Obviously, some existing ancient villages and streets have not been protected in place, so they are busy repairing antique things, and they are not rigorous enough. It is undeniable that the simple rural scenes in my childhood memories must go away. Modernization is a historical trend. The important thing is how to find the coexistence point of the present and ancient. Like Changsha Chaozong Street, it is very good. The power of enthusiastic people through this government, universities, and folks can be protected by traditional culture.

(The above pictures are taken by Tan Jianhua)

Exhibitors

Time: July 16, 2022-September 16th, 2022

Location: Second Floor, Changsha Library

Opening time to open to the public for free, you can make an appointment to enroll in the Changsha Library WeChat public account in advance.

Author 丨 Liao Huiwen, Liu Shanshan

Edit 丨 Liao Huiwen

[Responsible editor: Wang Yaobing Intern: Yang Shuwen]

[Source: Hunan Daily · New Hunan Client]

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