Image from the 'ecological refugee' town of Hongsibao in Ningxia Province, China. Selected as part of Foto8's Summer Show 2009.
I’m pleased to announce that the above image has been selected for the foto8 Summer Show which is currently on show at HOST Gallery in London this week and will be there until the 5th of September.
“The Foto8 Summer Show saw over 2,300 individual image entries submitted by photographers from over 44 countries. The final selection of more than 120 framed prints is hung at HOST gallery in London. It was a tough choice with many spectacular images to view, but the Foto8 editorial team has made a final selection for the exhibitors of the second Annual Foto8 Awards & Summer Show 2009.” -Foto8
I’m delighted this image was chosen as it is by far one of my favourites taken whilst on assignment for the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting earlier this year. It was taken in the town of Hongsibao in Ningxia Province in north-central China, where I was visiting to document the lives of the residents of this town who are dubbed ‘ecological refugees’ as a result of being relocated from land ravaged by desertification.
The photo happened about whilst passing a school one day in the town. As children streamed out of the school, I hovered around hoping to get some kind of shot to represent the increase in access to education that the relocation of people has offered. There were hundreds of children milling around at the time, although you wouldn’t know it from this photo. As I was standing and waiting for something to happen, as I always do, I spotted this young boy walking on his own. As I watched him, I noticed he was approaching these holes in the ground, dug I presume in preparation to plant trees. As he meandered along the pavement, seemingly lost in his own world, I recall him spotting the holes too, curiously walking around them, and then just getting into one. I reacted instantly to record this strange situation however only managed to get 2 or 3 frames before he jumped out and moved on his way, having not even noticed me.
So what does the picture mean? A small debate about this appeared on the BBC Viewfinder blog recently here. One reader commented:
“the picture of the kid sinking , is explaining the condition there, . no words for this great picture. just awesome…”
Another was less impressed:
“..actually the kid in the hole foto just seems like where u would have a tree on the pavement and the tree isnt there. doesnt strike me as particularly anything.”
Then another seemed to be able to move beyond the obvious, to find a deeper meaning:
“The meaning is simple.. the tree WAS there. It is’nt now because it is too dry. The child is a juxtaposition of the tree. No tree now, no child in the future. Simple.”
This is the amazing thing about photography and the power of a single photo. One image can create different responses from viewers, depending on where they are from, their lives, their backgrounds etc. I have always been fascinated with pictures that raise more questions than give answers. I think this image definitely forces you to question, rather than just simply trying to tell you something.
For me, as soon as I saw this image after taking it, I envisaged the boy sinking into the hole, as if the town has been built on quicksand and he was being sucked into the ground. The town of Hongsibao was built 10 years ago, literally on top of the desert and this image represented by feelings about the town’s fragility in its construction on top of the sand. For one of the first times, I sat down and tried to look at my own memories and find out where this interpretation may of come from. I’m pretty sure it stemmed from Church Sunday School lessons from when I was a child and the stories of the fragility of houses built on sand, which I believe were part of some psalms or verses from the Bible. Even though I am not religious now, this vivid impression in my early childhood mind had obviously lingered and had resurfaced in the oddest of places, north-central China!
But, this was only my interpretation. Just because I took the picture, doesn’t mean I have exclusivity on its meaning. What does it say for you?
Stunning and inspiring photography Sean. I had the same interpretation as you, give or take. But it just shows that nobody has a monopoly over meaning, not even the author.
Look forward to seeing more, and if ever you’re short of a companion for a quiet beer in Beijing, I’d be honoured etc.
Hi Chris…Thanks for joining here. What was your interpretation of the photo? Drop me an email at sean’at’gallagher-photo.com and maybe we can arrange a meet sometime in Beijing. Best, Sean.