↑ Mori Jiu Naga introduces his own works. Photo by reporter Liu Qi
On July 22, sponsored by the Office of the Leading Group for the Application of Lingqu World Cultural Heritage in Xing'an County, and jointly organized by the Lingqu Museum, the Xing'an County Federation of Literary and Art Circles, and the Xing'an County Photographers Association, the opening ceremony of the "Photographer Sheng Jiuyong's Photography Works Donation and 'Millennium Canal· Literary Rhyme' Photography Exhibition" was held in the Lingqu Museum. During the event, photographer Sheng Jiuyong generously donated tens of thousands of precious photographic works he had accumulated to the Lingqu Museum. These works, starting from 1969, record the changes of time in Lingqu for more than 50 years.
Sheng Jiuyong, 79 years old this year, is a native of Yanguan Town, Xing'an County, and is close to old age but in good spirits. When the reporter met him, he was busy photographing the collection materials in the Lingqu Museum. He recalled to reporters that in June 1969, he was transferred to the Propaganda Department of the Xing'an County Party Committee as a press officer, and began to get involved with photography. "At that time, I borrowed a seagull camera from the Public Security Bureau and filmed everywhere."
With the passage of time, Sheng Jiuyong's photographic equipment has been upgraded from the Seagull 4B camera borrowed at the beginning, to the dual-lens Seagull 4A camera issued by the Propaganda Department, to the Hasselblad camera donated by friends, and now the SONY digital camera and DJI drone purchased by himself.
In his lens, Lingqu is the resident protagonist. "I grew up by the Lingqu and am familiar with it, but what really touched my heart was the chance encounter on April 15, 1969 when I was interviewed at Matou Mountain in Yanguan. At that time, I overheard a folk song: 'Thirty-six steep up Xing'an, steep and steep to see Matou Mountain, Matou Mountain has everything, lack of fairies with peonies. The first two lines of the ballad depict the majesty of Matou Mountain, while the last two lines reveal a beauty of loneliness. ”
↑August 1969 photograph of a fertile field irrigated by the Ling Canal.
↑ The Yanguan section of the South Canal of Lingqu taken in November 1988.
Sheng Jiuyong said that the altitude of Matou Mountain is not high, but it is the commanding height along the South Canal. "I heard that the Qingyun Hall on the mountain has been abandoned, leaving only the ruins of the wall and a lonely temple keeper, which greatly aroused my desire to explore, and I decided to go up the mountain to find out. Under the guidance of the villagers, I took advantage of the darkness to follow the rugged mountain road and through the dense bushes to finally reach the top of the mountain. When the first rays of sunlight break through the clouds and shine on the earth, the idyllic scenery in front of you is like a beautiful picture. The meandering South Canal is like a brilliant ribbon that dances lightly among the mountain peaks. In particular, the section of the Ling Canal from Liukouyan to Matou Mountain can be called the essence of the South Canal, and the ancestors used ingenious design to make it meander, so as to slow down the water flow and facilitate navigation. I was deeply impressed by the beauty. ”
Since then, he has also brought his camera countless times, along this ribbon, to trace the long history of the Ling Canal, recording the steep gates, weirs, bridges, and the colorful life scenes of the people on both sides of the Ling Canal.
"The total number of photographs of the Lingqu alone is estimated to be tens of thousands. Every time I shoot Lingqu, I can discover new beauty. Whenever he captures the wonderful moment of Lingqu, he is excited. From the original black-and-white photographs to today's color pictures, hundreds of works such as "New Book" and "Lingqu Water Transport" have been published in authoritative newspapers and periodicals such as "People's Daily" and "China Photography", and have been widely acclaimed.
This year, Sheng Jiuyong decided to donate all the tens of thousands of photos he collected to the Lingqu Museum. The photographs are mainly scans of old photographs taken between 1969 and 2024 and electronic files of new photographs.
↑The stone slab bridge of the Dutou River was photographed in September 1978.
Since 2020, with the gradual decline of physical strength, Sheng Jiuyong's frequency of going out to shoot has decreased significantly, and he has instead devoted a lot of energy to the sorting and digitization of pictures. Not only did he meticulously scan all the old photographs that had been printed into electronic archives, but he also reproduced them in high quality using professional equipment.
Talking about the donation, he said with emotion: "Hung Yen is changing with each passing day, and I was fortunate to record some of it with my camera. I am very satisfied and proud to be able to donate my work to the Lingqu Museum. It is hoped that the younger generations will be able to see the former appearance of Lingqu through these photos. ”
Liao Xinhua, a member of the Xing'an County Photographers Association, said: "Mr. Sheng has a deep affection for Xing'an, and the more than 50 years recorded by his lens have given the people of Xing'an and even the whole country the opportunity to experience it intuitively through this donation." This is not only a great contribution to the art of photography in Hung Yen, but also inspires more photographers in Hung Yen to keep moving forward. Almost all of the active Hung Yen photographers have been guided and influenced by him, and he is our eternal role model. ”
↑ Photographed on Lingqu North Road in September 1991.
(Except for the signature, the pictures are all works of Sheng Jiuyong)
Source: Guilin Evening News