Li Qianguang: Photography becomes part of Lishui
The Third International Photography Symposium and the 2019 Lishui Photography Festival took place in Lishui, Zhejiang province from Nov 8 to 12.
Li Qianguang, vice-chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Arts Circles, attended the event and shared his feelings about it and the city.
Li Qianguang, vice-chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Arts Circles, accepts an interview on Nov 9, 2019. [Photo by Xiao Da/chinadaily.com.cn]
The festival had a positive effect on cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries, allowing worldwide photographers to get close to China and the city of Lishui, said Li. Meanwhile, it was also a platform for domestic photographers to absorb international photography culture by communicating with the foreign artists showing their works at the event.
Lishui has the first professional photography museum in China, the Photography Museum of Lishui, which not only shows the 180-year history of photography, but also introduces Lishui's culture to visitors.
It is a city where photography is a part of people's lives, Li Qianguang said.
"Seven Alleys" was one of the exhibitions during the event. It aimed to form real relationships between the exhibition and the locals' real lives, and was therefore set in the alleys and houses where the stories happened. The exhibited works included books, photography works recording life in the alleys, installation arts, and poems and photos created by alley residents. Nowadays, everyone has a mobile phone, and anyone can be a photographer.
Fu Yongjun (center), curator of the exhibition of "Seven Alleys", introduces the exhibition and stories behind it to Li Qianguang (right), vice-chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Arts Circles on Nov 8, 2019. [Photo by Xiao Da/chinadaily.com.cn]
What impressed Li most were the open minds of locals. When he and Lishui officials toured the Photography Museum on Nov 9, a Lishui woman eagerly talked to them and hoped that Li Qianguang or a member of his group would take a picture of her and her husband.
In the perspective of traditional culture, the Chinese are still relatively conservative in showing themselves. They owe much to the popularity of photography and international culture exchanges during the Lishui Photography Festival over the years as it has encouraged them to approach the world and shape open minds.
Li Qianguang (center), vice-chairman of the China Federation of Literary and Arts Circles, visits the Photography Museum of Lishui, the first professional photography museum in China, on Nov 9, 2019. [Photo by Xiao Da/chinadaily.com.cn]
Referring to the future of the Lishui Photography Festival, Li Qianguang said that the event should insist on its concept of being "international, academic and mass".
"Stay true to our original aspiration." It requires cultural and artistic workers to not only get close to the public, but also to focus on recording real life - the original purpose of photography.
The Lishui Photography Festival has been held nine times since 2004. It has escalated into an exhibition of the largest-scale in the world, and plays a unique role in promoting the city of Lishui on the world stage.
Lishui, named as "the home of Chinese photography" by the China Photographers Association in 1999, is China's first ecological city. Its picturesque landscapes and resplendent civilization offer a rich variety of photographic work.
