PHOTOGRAPHY-FRED CHUNG

FRED CHUNG（1953- ）

Former Art Consultant of Inventec co.
Photographer Artist
Adjunct Assistant Professor in College of Humanities and Education and in the Department of Commercial Design, Chun Yuan University
Executive Director of The Chinese Society of Photographic Educations, Director of Exhibition Evaluation Division

AWARDS

PUBLICATIONS

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

JOINT EXHIBITIONS

EXPERIENCES

COLLECTION

1984 California, U.S.A.

Passing through the Prairie

I went to Chicago in 1983, and spent the bleak winter days there. In the spring of 1984, my wife and I moved to California, a place filled our hearts with excitement and expectation.  I transferred to the Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, for three years, we lived in this beautiful coastal town where many Spanish colonial architectures were preserved.  

Whenever we got free time, we took short trips to the coastal area and the prairie up on the hills. It was almost summer when we drove through a prairie covered with long dry grass, I stopped the car and got off to look around, while my wife stay in the car, listening to the piano pieces by Chopin.  I took out camera and looked through the lens, feeling touched by the sight, the music, the smell of the grass, and the car with my wife in it, I saved that precious moment in this picture.

Two Roads Diverged in a Desert

This image was taken in Death Valley.  It was at the magic hour after sun set, the curving roads on the white salt basin looked like calligraphy lines, and the pinkish purple lights reflected on the Bad Water looked like watercolor wash.  

The whole scene seemed to be composing a majestic symphony, although the beauty of the magic hour faded very quickly.  This image is very dear to me, as it was taken during a time when I finally found serenity, and I knew I had chosen the right path of life.

1987 California, U.S.A.

1987 California, U.S.A.

A House with Scenery

I believe the formation of an image has a lot to do with the photographer’s experiences and reflections, and for my works, Classical music and paintings by the Surrealists like Rene Magritte also play important roles. The melody of the music and the mood in the paintings always provide me with all kinds of fantasies, which would combine to the scenes I see with my camera.

This work could not be achieved without a special house and its courtyard in Santa Barbara, where I visited many times, and when I finally took a picture of the scene, I tried my best to unite reality and fantasy in one shot, and to arrange the elements of time and space on the same picture plane. I think what I really want to express through this image is: a heart filled with scenery.

At the Taipei International Visual Design Exhibition in 1995, organized by Chinese and French art education associations, this work won the Professional Photography Golden Prize and it was chosen to be the front cover of the exhibition’s brochures.

Grandma and Grandchildren-1

This was the first picture I took after coming back from the States.  It was at the old family house in Pintung, I decided to use the walls as background to my picture, a setting very similar to the triangular background that Irving Penn once set up in his studio.  The two walls include an old one and a new one; I used them to imply the passing of time and the lineage between different generations.

The old lady and the children were related, just like my grandma and I.  When I was small, the room behind the old wall was the very place my grandma lived.  I tried to express the distinctive cultural background through color combination and the composition; furthermore, I tried to convey the implicit affection between the grandma and her grandchildren.

1989 Pintung Kaosu, Taiwan

1995 Pintung Kaosu, Taiwan

Grandma and Grandchildren-2

The old lady in the image was my aunt in her eighties, and the girl is my daughter, she was seven year old.  My aunt was a Hakka (a division of Cantonese), who married my father’s eldest brother, and raised 9 children.  She also made efforts to help the farm works and serve her parents-in-law.

With my aunt, an old lady, I tried to express a deep affection for my grandma, who was also a hardworking Hakka woman.  One year after I took this picture, my aunt died, and for my family, this photo turns into a commemoration of her.

The Earthen Wall

This is a “semi-abstract” work, which includes the idea of Fine Art photography and the spirit of Documentary.  The earthen wall on the right occupies a large part of the picture plane, and a curving line divides it into yellow area and black area, makes it look like a map.  The wall standing in the dusk seems to be peaceful and restless at the same time, so beautiful and yet under an unspeakable pressure.  

A row of traditional brick houses stands on the upper left, with laundry hanging outside, implies a simple and rustic village life.  With this image, I would like to express my support for the preservation of Taiwan’s old buildings and historic sites, also to remind my fellow citizens of our spiritual heritage.

1996 Hsinchu, Taiwan

1995 Okinawa, Japan
（1999 revision completed)

Balloon with Broken Thread

A balloon with broken thread was flying above the grand bridge and the immense blue-green ocean; it was lost, like a passenger without destination.  The colors in the image are bright and pure, and the diagonal elements in the composition are dynamic and powerful, but the air is quiet.  

The world is such a wonderful place, yet our life in this world is short and fragile, I know I have to live a life to its fullest, or I will be lost, just like the balloon.

A Resting Place for My Soul

It was at dusk, I stood in front of this scenery, and suddenly the memory of another trip came into my mind, it was a trip along the east coast of Taiwan taken in my late twenties.  After thirty-one years, I visited this area again.  On the coastal plain stood a single house, an inn I could stay for a day or two.  

The silhouette of the house looked like a lonely passenger, just like myself, and the reflection of rainwater in the foreground seemed to be the living water, a gift from God, leading my soul to the resting place!

2014 Hualien, Taiwan

2017 Hualien, Taiwan
Commemorate the noble soul of Mr. Chi Po-Lin.

The Rice Field Facing the Pacific Ocean

This work is a tribute to the film director Chi Po-Lin, a victim of a helicopter crash.  The accident happened when Mr. Chi and his assistant took a helicopter to investigate the east coast of Taiwan, and when the helicopter flied above the rice fields at Chishang, his assistant took a picture of the beautiful yellow rice fields and sent the image to his classmate who happened to be reaping rice at Chishang at that very moment.  

Before long, the helicopter crashed, both Mr. Chi and his assistant were killed.  A few months later, I decided to make a trip to Chishang and take a picture to pay tribute to Mr. Chi, for I truly admire his devotion to the protection of natural environment. I wish his soul rest in eternal peace.

Under the Cherry Blossom Tree

It was at noon, I saw a cherry blossom tree casting shadow on the ground, and on the shadow, fallen flowers, dry leaves and pebbles scattered, and some green grass grew among the pebbles.  I realized a cycle of life was forming right there, including death and rebirth, inevitable consequence and ardent expectation.

The pebbles looked like cherry blossoms, and the shadow a tree.  After taking the picture, I decided to show it upside down, because in this way I could build a tension between the reality and the fantasy.

2020 Miaoli, Taiwan

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