Chen Fuli Photographs Zhangjiajie
Chen Fuli Photographs Zhangjiajie, by Zhou Zhide. Eager to 'Travel' In April 1981, the famous Hong Kong photographer Chen Fuli and a party of more than 10 people, at the invitation of the Shanghai branch of the China Photographers Association, came to Hangzhou by the West Lake. They had come to the mainland to visit and pay respects on the 100th anniversary of the birth of Mr. Lu Xun, pioneer of China's cultural revolution. There, they happened to learn that in western Hunan a marvelously strange 'monster mountain,' Zhangjiajie, had been discovered,…
Chen Fuli Photographs Zhangjiajie
By Zhou Zhide
Anxious to Explore
In April 1981, the renowned Hong Kong photographer Chen Fuli and a group of more than ten people, at the invitation of the Shanghai Branch of the Chinese Photographers Association, arrived at the shores of West Lake in Hangzhou. They had come to the mainland to visit and pay tribute to the 100th anniversary of the birth of Mr. Lu Xun, the pioneer of China's cultural revolution. There, they happened to learn that in western Hunan a marvelously unique “strange mountain” called Zhangjiajie had been discovered, a tourist destination still in a state of obscurity, and at once they “could not sit still, could not sleep peacefully, their hearts set only on Hunan.” On the 12th they were still in Hong Kong, on the 17th they reached Peach Blossom Spring, and on the 18th they arrived at Dayong. In the county town, after only a brief rest, they asked to hear an introduction and see pictures. When they heard about such scenic spots and rare flowers, herbs, birds, and animals as “Husband and Wife Rock,” “Golden Whip Rock,” the “Chinese Dove Flower,” the “Lobster Flower,” the “Water-Carrying Chicken,” and the “Flying Tiger,” every one of them was dancing with joy and beaming with delight.
After a hurried lunch, the group could hardly wait to set off for Zhangjiajie. Sitting in the car, Mr. Chen turned to me with a smile and said: “Is this what you'd call being 'anxious to explore'?”
Visitors from Beyond the Sky
“If you don't climb Huangshizhai, your trip to Zhangjiajie is in vain.” Huangshizhai is a strikingly isolated peak, with a platform of several hundred mu on top. Historical records state: “The mountain of Qingya is known as the domain of the Yuan family; on it, from east to west and north to south, it extends forty-eight li…… To its southwest is the stockade of Huangshi, its surrounding slopes like sheer cliffs, overlooking the east and rising in the west, with no inhabitants on top, where those fleeing the world sometimes hid.” (Yongding County Local Gazetteer) Several ancient texts, including the Lizhou Prefecture Gazetteer, also record that Zhang Liang, the Marquis of Liu of the Han Dynasty, roamed with Master Red Pine and lived in seclusion on Qingya Mountain, and “after death was buried on Qingya Mountain.” Huangshizhai was named after his teacher, Master Yellow Stone, who rescued Zhang Liang, and the name “Zhangjiajie” is thus inseparably linked to Zhang Liang. In the Ming Dynasty, Zhang Wanchong, commander of the Yongding Guard, buried his mother, née Huang, here and took the lead in building the Temple of Master Yellow Stone, which made the place famous and turned it into a paradise for hermits and refugees.
Besides its rich cultural and historical heritage, the scenery of Huangshizhai is especially extraordinary. Walking around the stockade, visitors can take in the entire panorama of the Zhangjiajie scenic area, and photographers can shoot a continuous series of images with varied subjects. The pastoral cottages and exotic flowers, the rare birds and animals and precious trees here gather the finest of all mountains, blending north and south into one. Taken all together and summed up in a word, visitors from every direction cannot help but cry out in amazement!
On the mountain path at the second gate, the photographers were captivated by a towering stone peak—the famous “Mountain-Pinning Divine Needle.” At that moment, a goshawk suddenly burst into the frame, hovering exactly at the tip of the Mountain-Pinning Divine Needle. This was a wonder the photographers might not see in a thousand years; many people, for the sake of such an ideal image, would not hesitate to fake it in the darkroom, crudely pasting flying birds onto the picture. Now, before you could say it was slow, it was fast—one after another they raised their cameras, all aimed at the “Eagle of the Mountain,” firing away like a string of firecrackers. Mr. Chen Fuli was even more thrilled, crying out again and again: “This is a visitor from beyond the sky—absolutely beautiful! Absolutely wonderful!”
Later, I heard that Mr. Chen Fuli's “Eagle of the Mountain” was exhibited at the Royal Photographic Society in London and won a gold medal, and the name “Zhangjiajie” landed in Europe for the first time.
Quietly Shooting the Sunset
In order to photograph the afterglow of the setting sun from the top of Huangshizhai, from 3 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on April 22, Chen Fuli and his group held their cameras and stood on the cliff of the observation platform, sitting quietly, observing, waiting. After 4 o'clock, the sun finally showed its smiling face from among the clouds and mist. Toward the side of Chaotian Temple and Xinglong Township, the sky began to rise and open up. By 5 p.m., brilliant and magnificent pillars, strips, and bands of light finally appeared around Longfeng Temple, Chaotian Temple, and Yaomei Bay. These beams of light, thick as pillars and fine as gauze, sifted over thousands of peaks, giving this vast world distinct layers, varying distances, vivid colors, and clear light; together with the trees and flowers, the scene was truly enchanting. At this moment, the photographers all observed through their camera lenses. Mr. Chen Fuli aimed his lens at these scenes and shot dozens of frames in succession. By then, people had come to invite him to dinner, but he still did not rise; he only nodded politely, smiled, said “Thank you,” and then entered once more into a state of intense shooting.
As time passed, the red sun gradually sank in the west. With the reflected light of the setting sun, new scenery appeared: the old forest dark green, the new buds pale yellow; the peaks half dark and half bright, the light weak nearby and strong far away; the distant mountains deep as dark paint, the near mountains pale as a curtain. Such rare scenes, occasionally produced by the evening light, often vanish in an instant. Mr. Chen Fuli was seen holding his breath, skillfully aiming his camera at the target—click, click, click—and within seconds he had captured the charming scenery of “Lingering Glow of the Setting Sun.”
A Good Photograph Is Hard to Come By
“My footprints have covered the world, but a good photograph is the hardest thing to come by!” Mr. Chen Fuli said with emotion.
“Ah, it's wonderful! Even better than I imagined!” said another photographer, Jian Qingfu.
“This place really is more beautiful than Huangshan—absolutely beautiful!” The photographer Ye Bingyao also praised it without end. “As long as the problems of transportation and lodging are solved, I dare say tourists from all over the world will gather here!”
Mr. Chen Fuli is now 65 years old. He is a deputy to the National People's Congress, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, vice chairman of the Chinese Photographers Association, and a member of the National Federation of Literary and Art Circles. Born in 1916 in a rural area of Chao'an, Guangdong, he went to Southeast Asia as a youth to make a living, later moving through Thailand, Vietnam, and other countries. In 1945 he began studying photography in Vietnam and founded the Vietnam Photographic Society. In 1955 he settled in Hong Kong and opened Taihua Trading Company, mainly dealing in grain and oil. In his spare time from business, he founded the Hong Kong Chinese Photographic Society, founded and edited the monthly magazine Photography Art, and successively held solo exhibitions in Saigon, Bangkok, and other cities. In 1964 he was awarded the distinction of Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society in London, “FRPS.” The famous photographer Chen Bo said: “Mr. Chen Fuli is the one who has best combined business and photographic art.” Chen Fuli himself said: “Doing business is my means; photography is my goal.” He also said that without tremendous economic strength as backing, it would be impossible to photograph the whole world.
Mr. Chen's photographic interests are broad—people, landscapes, still life, none beyond his ability—and the style of his landscape works is close to the tradition of Chinese painting. His works such as “The Earth Gently Blows Warm Air,” “War and Peace,” “Where Is My Hometown at Dusk,” “Struggle,” “Ode to the Morning Light,” as well as “Vast Pines” and “Green Pines in Heavy Snow,” are all rare artistic treasures.
Previously, Mr. Chen had for two consecutive years won the best overall result in the Hong Kong Photographic Society's Grade A monthly competition. Each year the American Landscape Society compiled statistics on selections for international photography “salons” around the world, and for many years he was listed among the top ten for best results. In 1979, when he held a solo exhibition of 120 works in Beijing, it caused a sensation, and Chen Fuli's name began to enter the view of the domestic public. On this trip to Zhangjiajie, he felt greatly that they had met too late. He worked almost day and night, wishing he could “frame” all of Zhangjiajie in his lens. He and his companions went deep into Yaozizhai, Huangshizhai, Golden Whip Stream, Shuirao Simen, and other places, creatively shooting many landscape and portrait photographs.
On April 22, the photographers climbed Yaozizhai.
Here they carefully composed and carefully shot, taking altogether about two hundred landscape photographs in half a day. The large quantity did not satisfy the photographers; only that vast world of sandstone peak forest made them cheer and leap with excitement. Mr. Chen Fuli said with considerable feeling: “For most of my life I have been to many countries in the world, taken many famous pictures, and won many gold, silver, and bronze medals, but there are not many I am satisfied with, and good photographs are even harder to come by.”
“Were there any good photographs this time?” I asked.
“Today there are probably two or three good ones; at Huangshizhai there may be one or two.”
“Are you satisfied with this trip to Zhangjiajie?”
“Satisfied, satisfied. In autumn and winter I will come again to shoot the red leaves and snow scenes.”
On Being “Famous”
After five days of intense shooting, Mr. Chen Fuli and his group were about to leave. On the night of April 23, the Dayong County People's Government held an informal banquet to see them off. At the banquet, host and guests exchanged speeches, jointly celebrating the success of the shooting and expressing enduring friendship. At the same time, the photographers also made impromptu remarks, offering many original views and leaving valuable suggestions. Their common conclusion was:
Zhangjiajie is not the same concept as the already famous Huangshan, Guilin, Lushan, and others. It has broken humanity's explanation of “mountains” and all traditional rules; none of the models in painting theory can be directly applied to Zhangjiajie. It was even said that it brings trouble to geographical surveying, because its contour lines cannot be drawn. This is Zhangjiajie, distinct from all the famous mountains and great rivers of the world!
Mr. Chen Fuli also said wittily: “Those who have never been to Huangshan are not photographers; those who have never been to Zhangjiajie are not famous photographers!”
A few days later, I received a long-distance call from Hong Kong and heard an eager voice on the other end: “Thank you for your kindness, thank you for Zhangjiajie's gift. The Qingyan Mountain photography exhibition was a great success and caused a sensation in Hong Kong!” I understood—that was Chen Fuli's voice.
Mountains and passes stretch far, the great sea vast and boundless. I cannot cross the barriers to Hong Kong to share in the joy of Mr. Chen and the others' success; I can only say silently in my heart: if one day in the future the people of Zhangjiajie become “prosperous,” then the great name of Mr. Chen Fuli, the early promoter and “founding master” of Zhangjiajie, should be inscribed on the sheer cliffs of the great peak forest.