December 2016

Ancient Tree
Beijing, China
2016

In the local tourist literature (that which is in the English language anyway) describes all the trees in the Forbidden City as “ancient.” I’m not sure what they mean by that, although one thing I saw on the internet mentioned a 400 year old tree. They also describe these as being pine trees when I believe here they would be considered some form of cedar or perhaps juniper. Nonetheless, I really liked some of the shapes, this one in particular.

Under Cover of Night
Beijing, China
2016

The smog was typically worse at night than during the day during our stay in Beijing. But a little darkness does a good job of camouflaging the issue, as seen in this shot compared to the daytime view from the same location that I posted two days ago.

Lectio #67
Beijing, China
2016

Smog As Art
Beijing, China
2016

I spent our last day in Beijing at the China National Art Museum. They have a very impressive collection of both traditional and contemporary Chinese art. As usual when visiting an inspiring art collection, it energized my own quest for artful photographs. I took this one out the window when I returned to our hotel room. The smog (“only” rated as very unhealthy today as opposed to the hazardous level that has been more common this week) created a lovely yellow filter effect, making for a very painterly image. I don’t know if it’s China National Art Museum worthy, but it pleases me.

If the Amish Lived in Beijing
Beijing, China
2016

The American Ambassador to China, Max Baucus and his wife Melodee Hanes hosted a reception for exhibiting American artists at the Ambassador’s residence on Wednesday. They were great hosts (the food was amazing) and the reception was quite successful. Here are shots of me with the Ambassador and addressing the audience along with the other three attending artists.

Spent Beauty #16
Beijing, China
2016

A lotus leaf bends double towards the ice on frozen Kunming Lake at the Summer Palace.

Pagoda Ceiling
Beijing, China
2016

A twelve-hour flight to get there from Seattle, 22 million people, killer traffic jams, killer (literally) smog, and crowds everywhere. I often wonder why I enjoy coming to China. Maybe it has to do with coming across scenes like this at the Summer Palace. What an amazing sight.

Palatial Shadow
Beijing, China
2016

A young woman poses for a photograph in the shadow of one of the many, many palaces in the Forbidden City. I was not the intended photographer for her pose (rather her friend off camera to the left was), nor was I framing the image with her in mind–she just walked into it while I was getting reading to take the shot. Without knowing it, she made this a more interesting composition than what I would have gotten otherwise.

Framing the Wall
Huanghaucheng, China
2016