August 31, 2011
Nikon Asia and Objectifs Present its 3rd Exhibition “Bright Lights and Big Cities” in ongoing online campaign “Through Asian Eyes”
Nikon Asia’s Through Asian Eyes campaign, in collaboration with Objectifs, has refreshed its site with a new photography collection titled “Bright Lights and Big Cities”. This edition, the third in its Asian photography exhibition website “Through Asian Eyes”, explores works by photographers selected from Taiwan, India and the Philippines.
If one is to mention “Asian City”, our minds conjure up images of Neon billboards, busy street intersections and towering skyscrapers. Photographers in Nikon Asia’s 3rd exhibition present their own different viewpoints of the bright lights and big cities of their countries, giving us a glimpse into their life as seen “Through Asian Eyes”.
Nikon believes that “Through Asian Eyes” is a well needed platform to inspire young photographers, entry-level photographers as well as seasoned amateurs with living lessons and showcases of works by others, thus developing a vibrant photography scene amongst emerging photographers as well as promoting Asian contemporary photography.
To view the photography collections, visit http://asianeyes.nikon-asia.com.
About the Works Featured
舞動一瞬 (A moment in dance) by Chien-Yang Wang, Taiwan
Chien-Yang Wang’s dance series offers us different insights into the Taiwanese contemporary performance scene, from pop culture to pieces rooted in tradition. His work plays with light and shadows to bring out the energy and femininity of the beautifully choreographed pieces.
Says Chien, “This series of images was made during the dance rehearsals or actual performances. In my work, I emphasise the poignant moments in the pieces, and use my camera to capture those specific emotions, beautiful moves and energy that take place in that instant. Photographing dancers and the works of choreographers means a lot to me. I like to use the play of light and shadows to add depth to my works. I hope that you will enjoy this series.”
From Delhi to Haridwar, by Manjari Sharma, India
Manjari Sharma, who is based in the US and India, explores Old Delhi with the eyes of a curious wanderer revisiting her homeland. Her portraits single out the fascinating personalities, from sadhus to shopkeepers. In her photo collection, she portrays Old Delhi as a strange town, which reeks of claustrophobic streets overrun with a few too many human beings, who seem intrigued by her presence as much as she is intrigued by them. She also features Haridwar, which literally translates to "Doorway to God”, as a place with a great sense of mystery to her.
“COLORPLAY”, by Parc Cruz, Philippines
Finally, Filipino Parc Cruz, shares the cinematic landscape of Manila, Dubai and other cities, relying on the form, lines, spaces and angles of architectural structures and cityscapes to speak to the audience. He notes that “Working best with people as a photographer, the challenge of shooting these subjects has taken me out of my comfort zone.”
He says that playing around with colours and tones gives the buildings and skyscrapers in his collection a character and dynamism, impressing its total feel, impact and outcome. Therefore, “Color play”, when correctly used in photos, intensifies or isolates the images and photographers with the right understanding of this can apply the concept in whatever subjects are before them.
View Through Asian Eyes' 3rd Exhibition "Bright Lights and Big Cities " at:
http://asianeyes.nikon-asia.com/
More About “Through Asian Eyes”
“Through Asian Eyes” was launched in January 2011 with the inaugural exhibition theme of “Rising Stars”. The first exhibit in January this year presented visions of a new generation from three photographers which were Stefen Chow (Singapore), Khaled Hasan (Bangladesh) and Sarun Srisingchai (Thailand). The second series was titled “Past and Present” which was launched in May 2011, focusing on the documentary genre, as three other photographers, Deanna Ng (Singapore), Ahmad Zamroni (Indonesia) and Rahman Roslan (Malaysia) became witnesses to our times, exploring both our past and present.
“Through Asian Eyes” is a passionate initiative by Nikon for its young aspiring Asian photographers, whether seasoned or new to the industry. The project explores different exhibition themes and features photographers in Asia, in collaboration with Objectifs, a visual arts centre for all photography and filmmaking enthusiasts and professionals. Photographers featured in this campaign are selected based on their style and the work they had been doing. Their works are then curetted according to the selected theme in the effort to inspire other photographers with the collections finally featured.
Since the inaugural launch of “Rising Stars” in January, photographers Stefen Chow and Khaled Hasan as well as “Past and Present” photographers Deanna Ng and Ahmad Zamroni, have gone on to speaker engagements such as at Nikon Malaysia’s recent 10th Anniversary from 31st March 2011 to 3rd April 2011 at MidValley Exhibition Centre, Kuala Lumpur. This was the biggest Nikon event in Malaysia, visited by ten thousands of visitors for the mega 4-day event. During the exhibition, the photographers of Nikon Asia’s “Through Asian Eyes” campaign were invited to share their photography experiences, much to the Malaysian audiences’ delight.
Nikon Asia’s “Through Asian Eyes” is a growing platform that allows Nikon to highlight the works of emerging Asian photographers and inspire Nikon’s faithful photographers to even greater heights with these interesting portrayals of Asian photographers, events, and cities
View Through Asian Eyes' 3rd Exhibition "Bright Lights and Big Cities " at:
http://asianeyes.nikon-asia.com/
Photographer Bios in “Bright Lights and Big Cities” (3rd Exhibition)
Chien-Yang Wang (Taiwan)
Born in Taipei, Taiwan in 1981, Chien-Yang Wang (王建揚) graduated from the National Taiwan Art University with a BA in Fine Art in 2006. Chien-Yang had always planned to be an artist, but his foray into photography happened by chance when some friends who were dancers invited him to shoot their performance. Not wanting to miss the opportunity, he borrowed Nikon FM2 film camera to start photographing, and through this episode and self-learning, Chien-Yang began his journey with photography.
Upon graduation, Chien-Yang was a freelance photographer before focusing on dance and performance photography. He took part in the 1st GEISAI Taiwan Arts Fair, where his works were awarded the Judges Prize. He has gone on to win several awards, including first place for Nudes and People-Others at the 2010 International Photography Awards, New York City and the 2nd at the 2009 France Prix de la Photographie Paris (Px3), under the Non Professional Advertising Music category. He was also the Finalist at the 2nd GEISAI Taiwan Arts Fair in 2010.
Chien-Yang’s works have been featured in places like the United States, Japan, Shanghai and Hong Kong. His works will be showcased in Germany and Australia next year.
Manjari Sharma (India)
Manjari Sharma (b. 1979) is a photographer based in New York City. Rooted in the study of relationships and personal mythology, Manjari's work has been recognised as walking the line of fine art and traditional portraiture.
Manjari was chosen as the Critical mass top 50 in 2010 and has been praised and featured by various magazines and photography critics. She was selected as a featured photographer and for the cover of PDNedu spring issue 2010; she received ASMP best of show in 2010 and eight honourable mentions at the IPA Lucie awards. She was recognised as a winner for the NYC Strand photo contest, judged by Lesley Martin and Darren Ching from Aperture amongst other honourable judges. In addition, Manjari's images were recently selected by John Paul Caponigro for a show in Colorado and her work has received press from The Morning News, Burn Magazine, 1000 Words Magazine, Deep Sleep magazine, Slideluck Potshow, PDN Photo of The Day Blog, Flak Photo, Fraction Magazine, Exposure Compensation, Nymphoto blog, Leica and Lenscratch amongst many others.
In the past few years, Manjari's work has been showcased in several group and solo exhibitions both in the US and internationally. In addition to the Critical Mass 2010 show "Across the Divide" her work has been exhibited at Nudage, an International group exposition in Spain, The Photographic Centre North West, Seattle, Kris Graves Projects in Brooklyn, NY and at the Center for Fine Art Photography, Fort Collins, Colorado. Manjari has had a solo show of her work "Paani" at the Kopeikin Gallery in Los Angeles 2011 and also with Richard Levy Gallery in Alburqurque, NM in Fall 2010.
Manjari uses her vulnerability and experience of culture shock to inform and enhance her image making process. She is constantly seeking out new contexts and stories to commit to film. She has shot extensively in the US, India and Brazil exploring the mythologies of these places and the people that inhabit those lands.
Manjari grew up in Mumbai, India and before moving to the US, she worked for her national news daily, The Times of India, as a photojournalist and a leading South Asian photo magazine called Better Photography. She holds a bachelor'ss degree in Visual Communication from S.N.D.T University, Mumbai and a BFA in photography from Columbus College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio. She lives in Brooklyn and is represented by the Richard Levy Gallery in Albuquerque, NM and Paul Kopeikin in Los Angeles.
Parc Cruz (Philippines)
Parc Cruz is a freelance photographer specializing in People, Travel and Conceptual Photography. Embarking on a creative hobby in 2005, Parc's images have been featured in different international and local publications on the internet and in print media. He has also achieved numerous accolades and recognition of his work, including being shortlisted in a National Geographic photo-contest in 2007. By the following year, Parc showcased his works in two well-received photography exhibits.
His achievements by far, have been a welcome surprise, considering his brief, but still evolving career as a photographer. Influenced by his love for the cinema, Parc considers his work as a process, where images draw interesting stories and inspirations. Other than working using traditional techniques in photography, he also incorporates and explores with digital media for his creative output.
As a freelance photographer, Parc mainly conducts Photography and post-processing workshops to aspiring hobbyists and has been a sought after mentor who has travelled the Philippines extensively, as well as other parts of Asia and the Middle East. He is set to travel in Europe and North America for a series of Photography workshops. He is part of the Nikon Pro family of the Philippines.
View Through Asian Eyes' 3rd Exhibition "Bright Lights and Big Cities " at:
http://asianeyes.nikon-asia.com/
Nikon’s Philosophy
Since 1917, Nikon maintains an unwavering commitment to its corporate philosophy, “Trustworthiness and Creativity”. As it becomes ever more global, Nikon enacted“Our Aspirations - Meeting needs. Exceeding expectations”as its new vision in the year 2007 to create “a new Nikon”. In these new visions, Nikon aims not only to meet the needs of customers but also to provide customers with value that exceeds their expectations. “Meeting needs. Exceeding expectations.” is therefore Nikon’s vision for the future, and it aims to fulfil that through four key commitments that include being pro-active, seeking new knowledge, communicating effectively and to display integrity.
More information at Nikon Asia
For more information, please email us
About Objectifs
Objectifs is a visual arts centre for all photography and filmmaking enthusiasts and professionals. Established in 2003, Objectifs has become one of the leading visual arts centre in Southeast Asia, providing instructions in photography and filmmaking at different skill levels. Their residencies, professional programmes and curated exhibitions at Objectifs Gallery are developmental platforms focused on nurturing Asian artists. Through Objectifs Films, they also promote local and Southeast Asian short films and feature films worldwide.
For more information, please contact:
Media contact: Emmeline Yong
Tel: +65 6293 9782
Fax: +65 6293 9723
Email: emmeline.yong@objectifs.com.sg