Paifang bij de keizerlijke graftombes van de Ming dynastie te Peking before 1920

This is a photo of Paifang near the Ming Dynasty tombs in Beijing by Donald Mennie. He’s playing with light here, not the bright harsh sun but a soft, hazy daylight. The tonal range of the image is pretty narrow, it’s all in the beige family, but look at how Mennie coaxes a real sense of depth with such a limited palette. The surface of the print itself is smooth, almost like vellum, yet it gives the impression of being in the dusty air surrounding the gateway. I love the way the verticals of the columns and roofs create a kind of rhythm, a built environment echoing the natural forms of the distant mountains. Mennie’s work reminds me a little of Atget’s photographs of Paris, documenting everyday life with a quiet reverence. But there’s also a hint of something more, a feeling that Mennie isn’t just recording what he sees but trying to capture a mood, a feeling. Art isn’t about answers, but more about the questions it allows us to ask.