Spirit of Asia - exhibition of photographs by Tomasz Gudzowaty
4 July – 1 August 2004
The exhibition of works by Tomasz Gudzowaty, one of the world’s most distinguished photographers, four-time winner of the World Press Photo award, made in collaboration with Robert Boguslawski, is the result of a trip to China, Mongolia and Great Britain.
The photographs on display come together in three groups. The photographs from the Shaolin Monastery captivate us with their otherness, revealing to us the shroud of an ancient mystery. For in the collective imagination, the Shaolin Monastery exists as an almost magical place. At present, it is not quite so. The monastery’s monks have chosen a kind of compromise between history and modernity. It involves cultivating some of the traditions of the monastery while benefiting from the interest that Eastern culture has long enjoyed. The temple stands open to visitors, and the monks teach kung fu in the monastery’s many schools. But in the photographs, we see students and masters of the legendary martial art as if they were photographed not today, but a thousand years ago. Among the photographs on display from the Shaolin Monastery, 13 were awarded in this year’s World Press Photo 2003 competition
The second story is photos from the Naadam festival. This is a national sports festival with a tradition older than Mongolia itself. Apparently, as far back as five thousand years ago, nomadic tribes gathered so that their members could show off their physical strength, equestrian prowess and shooting skills, all things that have always been essential for survival here.
In addition to the wrestling and archery competitions, the festivities include a spectacular horse race in which the riders are children as young as four years old and twelve years old at the most. The gruelling rally across the Mongolian steppes over a distance of many kilometres is an unforgettable sight.The third story is about England, home to some fifty thousand Roma. Many of them still lead a nomadic lifestyle. Their journey is a constant improvisation, sleeping wherever fate or whim throws them. The only certainty is the annual meeting in Appleby. A horse fair is held there in the middle of every summer. It is also one of the largest gypsy gatherings in the world. For a week, the area designated as a market is transformed into a colourful gypsy town, making life more colourful for local residents and increasingly popular with tourists.
A festive atmosphere prevails in Appleby. The Roma meet long-lost friends, acquaintances and extended family from other stockyards. They chat at length about their adventures by the fire, dance and, of course, trade horses. They know all about these animals, as they have been faithful companions since the dawn of time. They know how to make a stubborn steed as docile as a lamb and how to make a lazy animal work hard. They also know all about harness and how to make it; they are also excellent blacksmiths.
The ‘spirit of Asia’ of the title is a commitment to tradition unparalleled in Western civilisation, making the three stories presented seem to take place outside of time. The monks continue the centuries-old tradition of martial arts, the Mongols ride horses like their forefathers at the time of Genghis Khan, and the Gypsies wander, just as mysterious as they were a millennium ago when, for unknown reasons, they left India, taking the ‘spirit’ with them.
