New Age Dead
I’ve been doing quite a bit of photography/documentary work regarding the dead in Singapore (more specifically Bukit Brown and various other locations) and it’s quite interesting to see how the old and the new have mixed together here. Some traditions have been forgotten and new ones are being created and right down the middle we have a confused (albeit amusing) mix of both. This is just one of those moments. (The rest will find it’s way to some sharing platform when I finally get down to full scale editing).
dedication
This isn’t one of my greatest shots but I quite like it. It was raining at a night festival and the band kept going and it was music all through the night. This was just a brief pause to wipe of the sweat, and probably some rain, which by now must’ve been mixed up quite thoroughly.
impermanence
The government has yet to decide how to deal with the railway station but there have been talks about turning the entire length of track (now unused and rails returned to Malaysia) into a green corridor. An unbroken stretch of greenery, much like the New York High Line.
ultimately, it boils down to a simple question. How do we decide what stays and what goes? How do we judge the values of the past against that of a prospectful future? How do we conclude that it is better to obliterate the memory of the thousands who were here for the lives of those thousands who may come? And would the thousands who have came want to know about the thousands who have gone? How can we summon the authority and dictate what we remember and what we may see? Can we wipe out the voices still clamoring for attention in a fading blank space also known as our Memory in the favour of the glimmering eyes tumbling about in the crevices of our imagination? is the future, this wide-eyed future weightier than the wrinkled past? We will never know.
And so I end this series here.
competition (how not to get washed away)
I don’t really know how to present panorama’s properly on this blog layout, it’s kind of bad for that, but I’m going to put one up all the same. You can enlarge the image or open it in another tab, it’s bigger than actually presented.
The railway station and it’s tracks have always been in a continued struggle with the times. It’s a fight to remain relevant, to remain needed, wanted and used. If not it risked being washed away into the dark tomes that now comprise our history. On the left is the 6 lane highway of the past and on the right is the 6 lane highway of the present. Big difference huh?
Except now the one on the left is no more.
On Personal Work (and also a departed railway station)
One of the things that I figured I should write about is the personal project. I recently stumbled upon a great article regarding this and will also be drawing out quotes here and there in the process. Anything in italics is quoted from the article.
–
Photoessays/stories and other larger bodies of work are what will become the portfolio of any photographer. While a great single might win you a POYI or two, it’s the projects that most editors will look at, they are the equivalent of a results sheet to a photographer. Which is why they are so incredibly important.
For my first mentorship, we were mentored on how to do a long photo project, the entire project compressed into a number of days of non-stop shooting which taught us more than we had ever learnt before. Doing a long term work is important “if you care about growing as a photographer and therefore as a person” Indeed, if I had never done my first long term work (the railway images that you’ve been seeing here and there), I probably wouldn’t be here blogging away and many other things would never have happened.
–
“I’d suggest starting with a subject that you care about, whether you stumble upon it or have to push yourself to figure out what you care about. The more outside of your interest or what matters to you the subject is, the harder it will be to stick with the effort.”
Personally, I’ve had a fixation with things from the past, this sentimental obsession that plagues my every day life (including my music preferences). The closure of the station was to me a no brainer really. It coincided with my mentorship and it fit in perfectly with my overly sentimental/romantic ideals.
farewell, mother and son
Once you have a topic or a subject, start doing research. Learn everything you can about that person, that place, that subject. See what else has been written, photographed, researched.
Unfortunately I didn’t have a lot of time to conduct research, and there wasn’t a great deal about it anyway. Only a single page from Wikipedia. Most of my research was done on the ground, interviewing all the stallholders, getting a feel of the location and spending hours just sitting there. It was through this method of just being there through which I got most of my information (and also, images).
Shopkeeper Mala with her daughter who does not intend to continue the business, but instead intends to go into the travel industry
–
The goal then is to find an approach to the subject that tells an interesting story
By entering a realm with your camera, you’ll begin to understand things more deeply, you’ll see things you can’t from afar and realize potentials.
I can find no better way to phrase this really. With my camera in hand, it not only opened me up to new opportunities, it also made me look at things more closely and visually and the extra attention yielded knowledge or ways to see that I had previously not seen. Honestly, there are only so many ways that you can photograph a train station before you get repeats. The trick is in seeing new things, things that were previously unseen. Out of the many images I took, there were remarkably few repeats. It was a nonstop process of experimentation of new things to figure out what worked and what didn’t.
–
Of course not everything you photograph will end up in the final edits.
Remarkably true. Out of all the images that I took (going into the low thousands), there are only 50 or so that are really remarkable and usable. As I said before, numbers help (to a certain extent). It was a brutal but necessary step to slash everything that I felt didn’t belong in the set. In the end, for my final exhibition, there were only 5 images. (Though others have ended up in other places).
–
one thing to ask yourself is if you want the project to end by asking or answering a question, by leaving things all neatly concluded or leaving loose ends for the viewer to wonder about?
And is there ever an end to a photo project? To me I believe that it’s all a matter of interest. Once you’ve grown tired of something, it will show in your images. The best images are made from things that you are passionate about, because you will give your all to make sure they work. Sometimes what is needed is to step back and just review everything that you have. And other times, if you feel that you have hit a dead end, it’s perfectly fine to cut all ties. Your work can only be as good as you believe it will be.
for me, there was a definite ending. Here, the Sultan of Johore salutes to the gathered crowd before he drives the last train out of the station.
But most important of all is that you begin. It doesn’t matter what or how, just as most people have trouble getting out of bed in the morning, it’s always the starting that is the most difficult. Get past that, and nothing will hold you back.
–
As promised, the link to the well-written article on the longer form of photography (the visual narrative)!
–
Shopkeeper, Naseer, embraces his niece as the station nears it's last day and he prepares to move out to the new station in Woodlands.
dismantling
finally my commitment is over and I can meet my life again! a longer post and some other stuff should be up tomorrow when I finally have more time. This was taken on one of the last days of the station, when everything was being torn down and it was getting late into the night. Apologies for the blur though, this was handheld.
so yeah, look forward to a significant increase in postings and more diversity rather than nonstop photos from me. Thanks for hanging around, even when I couldn’t post daily!
fan
second last night of late intense work, after this I get my life back! Back to what this blog’s really about, this image was snapped completely coincidentally as I was pacing the length of the train. The best part was that the lady pictured took no notice of me (and my lens smashed right up against the glass). Looking through the windows of trains are some of the best ways to get an image of people. Note: Just make sure that your reflection doesn’t end up in the image!
till death do us part
it’s funny how many people will flock to a site as it’s approaching it’s last days. While it was still around and running fine, no one cared about it. It reminds me of a dying man who gets a great deal of attention simply because he’s dying. (Which in itself is not a bad thing) With many sentimental memories in mind, people flocked back in droves, and even those who had no memories made some as they visited. It’s strange how we only pay attention to things once normalcy vanishes.
fade
Hey guys, sorry no post yesterday, I’ve been ridiculously busy (if you can’t tell, I’m writing this at 12:30 in the morning). Can feel some of the energy draining out of me, thankfully the tide is set to turn once the weekend arrives. (can’t wait) In the meanwhile, here’s the life draining out of something else (or so I hope it shows)
the last train rolled out of the station in June 2011 and the tracks have since been removed.
all gone.
craters
As the railway station approached it’s expiry date, more and more things started disappearing and the already timeworn station showed signs of irreparable damage. Like scars on skin.
These little ones were left behind by the telephone booths that once stood here many moons ago.
end of the line
Recently I’ve been curating my collection of photos from the largest body of work I have so far – the closing down of Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. The station had significant historical value and was also quite visible to the public eye nearer the dates of closure. It is one of the few untouched historical buildings left in Singapore (well, it was, anyway). I’ll just be throwing down some teasers and crumbs this week and there should be a long proper post next Sunday (when I get my life back again) once I find some time and also after I finish going through all four thousand of them.
It was closed in June 2011 and the government has yet to decide what to do with it. Nature groups and various other societies have been lobbying for it’s preservation but we’ll have to wait and see.
You might not get the historical background of the images or the station but just appreciate it for all it is. The station had a remarkably unique atmosphere and hey, who doesn’t get captivated by the idea of a old-style railway station, still chugging along in this decade of bullet trains and underground noisemakers.
lesson learnt
this will be my last post about this humble school in Indonesia and it goes out to all my student friends.
Here’s to everything that we take forgranted. White washed walls, a concrete floor, a projector and sound system. Our own desk and chair, large glass windows and air conditioning. A whiteboard (for theirs is black), lights (also known here as the windows) and perhaps most importantly, if you haven’t noticed it yet, a teacher.
music
there’s another thing about Indonesians – they love to sing. Even their daily language sounds like a song, replete with melody and pitch changes. This extends even to the children. After school they rush out to the neighbouring alleys one street down from school, grab a bench and an instrument and just play/sing! They have no fear whatsoever and they needn’t most of them are naturals at it.
not my best image but it shows what I want it to!
under construction
Back last June, I was given the unique privilege of visiting a school in Lombok, Indonesia. The school is a small one, all the different grades study in 3 small buildings, there are about 25 students in each class and the entire school is very much rooted in the community. It is, very small. Yet there is often a sense of excitement buzzing amongst the students.
Here, one of the new blocks is under construction. Don’t you just love the feel of the place! there is so much hope hanging in the air.
I might devote a couple more posts this week talking about the place, it’s so unique!
Look to the heavens
There’s been some argument between the government and the people on the building of a highway right through a very famous cemetery. There are many famous founding fathers and notable individuals who were there during Singapore’s rise to success who are buried in Bukit Brown. Some of them have roads named after them while others were owners of large companies that still exist till today.
The government recently put into action a plan to construct a highway right through the cemetery and a small percentage of the graves would be affected. These graves would have to be exhumed and the ashes stored at a columbarium in order to make way for future developments. To the chinese, burial is one of the most important rituals, but in land scarce Singapore, tradition and development go head to head and most times development wins.
Right now they’re trying to document all the graves and there are some photographers going down too. I have a decent collection of images of the place and I might be uploading them some time soon (when I can finally find some time).
Meanwhile, I’ll just leave this here as a teaser/trailer!
make up
I spent an evening covering a Singaporean all-female Chinese Opera troupe thanks to the invitation of another friend of mine. It was great fun and the ladies (most were in their 50s/60s) were very welcoming. It’s one of the few dying arts in Singapore and I thought it might be quite fun to document it before it vanishes completely. Many of the ladies lament that there was no one else to continue their trade. Some had begun training for the opera since their early teens and up till this day intend to continue performing.
As funding dries up and a new generation of Singaporeans move away from such communal forms of entertainment to their own individual platforms, the days of this type of public performance are numbered too.
Moonrise
This image was taken on the day after the last day of Chinese New Year (yesterday). The Chinese love everything vaguely superstitious so all our important dates coincide with full moons/new moons (which is pretty sweet for photography!)
Shot from the shutter 