《收租院》與《中國農民調查》The Chinese Peasant Study & The Collection House

“作为新中国成立后现实主义的代表作品，《收租院》 受到极高的评价，受到各级媒体的关注，甚至到国外展出过。《收租院》泥塑与音像制品让一代中国人为之流泪，艺术作品营造的氛围让任何人站在它面前也会忘记怀疑。据“地主庄园博物馆”老馆长介绍，《收租院》作品公开展出后，全国各地游客络绎不绝。每天需要排四路纵队买门票。在泥塑群像前，游客打堆堆，既不能前进，也不能后退，每天闭馆后都要捡到许多双鞋子，这种场面当然是文革时候。”

via 关于大地主刘文彩的传奇故事_老驴友的BLOG_新浪博客.——

在無綫電視看到由香港電台製作的”想一想中國”特輯, 介紹陳桂棣與吳春桃夫婦兩人寫的《中國農民調查》. 這個寫實報告文學在德國獲得了德國著名文學期刊Lettre頒發的優利烏斯報告文學獎. 套用BBC在其中文網站上的用語: “該期刊特別提及這對中國夫婦是在面對巨大政治壓力下, 以極大勇氣向世界展示中國工業化過程的陰暗面.”

記得少年時受到當時中國政治文化的影響, 對農民在舊社會受地主階級壓迫的狀況非常同情, 同時又覺得, 國家解放以後, 農民真正翻身了, 當國家的主人了, 生活從此不會走回頭路. 當時, 國內的當權者為了宣揚其在這種階級鬥爭中的英雄功績, 推出一件名為收租院的大型泥塑”藝術作品”, 到處巡迴展出, 旨在激發國人對舊社會的憎恨, 對新中國的熱愛.

看過以上引讀的國內博客文章後才知道這個作品的後面原來水份甚多, 大有弄虛作假, 顛倒是非之嫌. 不過這只是一個文藝作品, 其文化意義比事實真相重要. 但有一點令人唏噓的是, 由《中國農民調查》這份報告裡可以看到, 這個收租院其實在新中國並沒有消失, 只是角色轉移了而已; 而農民所受的災難也並沒有完結, 亦只是換了個模式而已.

中國的問題很複雜, 在溫總及胡主席的慈祥面孔背後, 我們看到的事有多少是真實的? 有多少是虛假的? 有多少我們能夠改變? 又有多少我們根本改變不了?

——

The Chinese Peasant Study

The Chinese Peasant Study written by Chen Guidi and Wu Chuntao shocked me quite emotionally as it was introduced and referenced in a documentary shown on Jade. Never before had I been aware that our peasants were so bitterly exploited and oppressed in so-called New China era. I was also greatly impressed by Chen and Wu for their bravery in unraveling the truth under the apparently acute political pressure present in China mainland today.

The study stroke me of the art show, The Rent Collection House, which had been propagated with raw political fervor during the 70’s by the contemporary regime.

The irony is that the House has not been demolished figuratively as well as literally after the Liberation. Our peasants have not been blessed with a much better life than their counterpart in the Old Society. The House which the art show was modeled on in the art show is still there curated as a tourist sight, while the real show is on as ever outside its walls, except that the role of the landlord is played by a different identity with same relentlessness if not even more.

The fog

The canoe

The canoe seems too impatient to wait for the fog to let up. The color of the canoe contracts with that of the remote back ground and livens the misty scene.

The difference is in the traveller’s eyes

Because of the resumption of interest, I have been glancing through quite a few photography blogs recently, especialy those with the theme of Macau.

Some of the bloggers are apparently advocate, or even, professional photographers themselves.  With their super-wide-angle and super-long-focus lenses, the watcher can often enjoy breath-taking extrodinary sights of landscape, cityscape or things that are normally present in our everyday life.  This is the magic of photographic technology coupled with the creativity of the human mind.  You can never imagine those things could be seen in such angles with your own eyes.  The appearence of our streets, our buildings, our landmarks, our memorials etc are greatly beautified and savored with color and light.  I love those photos too.  Nevertheless, I feel a little uneasy about the subtle surrealism in some of them.

Those bloggers, I presume, are mostly locals.  They are too familiar with the sights around them in life.  Without exaggeration or modification techniques things are just too ordinary to their eyes.  They always look for legendary or dramatic sparkles in those mundane realities, trying to reform them into fairy-tale delights for any eyes, sometimes by distorting them with their expensive high-tech photographic equipments and computer software.

As I passed by a shop this morning and saw a cat crouching on the counter, something stroke me of a missing sentiment that most of these photos lack.  It’s the localness in the eyes of a stranger.  A stranger is immune to the pale boredom or over-zealous nostalgia of a local resident, and thus would look at things more objectively and judge them with raw and original emotions, which are most precious in the image-forming of a city.

I am a local too, but from now on I will try my best to be a stranger when I see through the view-finder of my camera.

Another fish picture

Companion

Being encouraged by the former composition, I delved into more techniques of Photoshop and made this one.  The verse is from a “Song” poem.

Free magazines in Macau

There are several free local magazines in the market these days.  In an attempt to look for an opportunity of working in this field, I have done a quick review of some the their past issues as well as their lastest ones.  Though each of them may have unique characteristics of their own, the main themes and target audiences are similar enough.  They all claim and do aim at middle-class readers.  The pages are mainly made up of news and stories about celebrities, entertainments, luxuries, fine arts, leisure ideas and the sort.  Some of them do cover  serious subjects, such as the economic environment, social issues etc.  Not many independent view points, though.

I suppose it is the common philosophy of running a magazine for commercial purposes–you must pamper your audience with what they desire.

However, I do doubt the middle-class would only desire all those pleasurely things.  I just felt something was missing in the pages.  Vaguely do I know what it is, but I am sure it will be something that would make one magazine more popular than others, at least in some way.

I guess it is not the layout or artwork of a magazine that keeps its readers read on.  It’s the contents that counts.

Fish fun

Visited the Fishers’ Wharf days ago and took this picture.  It’s fun watching fish play. I wondered if they would ever find  the watchers-by funny too.  The poem is a crap.  I just made it up to assimilate the effect of a Chinese painting.

Holiday Hang-over

I have been rejecting the idea of writing anything since the Chinese New Year holidays.  It was a relapse of laziness.  There has always been excuses not to pick up the pen.  Too tired. Too happy.  Too busy. Too anything.  And, as I browsed around, I found that many of the linked bloggers were not writing either.  That excused me most.

No.  I must start writing again.  Start thinking, to be accurate.  There has been a lot of things to blog about during the holidays though.

Term or Whole Life? at SmartMoney.com

FOR MOST PEOPLE, the right type of life insurance can be summed up in a single word: term. But before we explain why, it’s important to understand the differences between the most common types of insurance available. Our glossary can help with that, and decipher some of the more common insurance lingo.

via Term or Whole Life? at SmartMoney.com.

It’s definitely worth resorting to the debate now and then, though not many people really care about what the arguments could mean to their well-being.  People should change their attitudes, especailly now, as the financial crsis is worsening everyday.