Zhang Kechun, born in 1980 in Sichuan province, China. He now lives and works in Chengdu. He won the National Geographic Picks Global Prize in 2008, was nominated by Three Shadow Photo Award in 2012, nominated by Sony World Photography Awards in 2012 and 2013, nominated by the Prix HSBC Pour la Photographie 2014. 2014 Daylight photo Award. 2014 Arles Photo Festival Discovery Award. His works were exhibited on 2012 CAFAM-Future Exhibition, 2013 Beijing Photo Biennial, 2013 PHOTOQUAI World Photography Biennale, 2014 Arles Photo Festival, 2014 Beijing +3 Gallery solo exhibition. His works were reported by many medias, such as Time, BBC News, Telegraph Magazine, China Photo Magazine and so on. He’s works have been collected internationally by many other museums and private Collectors from U.S.A, France, Germany, Japan and China, such as Chinese Image and Video Archive, Canada; Williams College Museum of Arts, USA; and CAFA Art Museum.
Between the Mountains and Water
“Mountains and rivers are always the heaviest carriers of Chinese people’s affection. The continental cultural awareness of making a sightseeing tour, the inherent cultivation consciousness of “mountains being virtuous, rivers being moral”, and the sense of visual illusion of a short distance away are always the main line of interpreting mountains and waters.
My occupation gives me chances of making sightseeing tours, and makes me capable of re-examining the present Mountains and waters. China is undergoing high-speed changes and immerses itself in the excitement of prosperity. The trend of strong destructive power which cannot be halted is following. Under this circumstance, I seem to be very insignificant as an ordinary people. In the course of my traveling over land and water over the years, I am looking for those people who are still in company with mountains and waters. When taking photos, I exchange with my subjects. I join them, and it is up to the person being exchanged and me to press the shutter. I believe that I cannot feel stronger or more complicated when I am lost in it. Even for a transient moment, I feel so delighted to encounter classical and precious relics on the way. What come next are great anxieties that they are likely to disappear tomorrow.”
To view more of Zhang’s work, please visit his website.