PREFACE

A Retrospective View

I remember that I wanted to make great accomplishments in my life when I was just a few years old,but I did not know what I could do at the time.During my early teenage years,I apprenticed with professional painters and musicians,dreaming of becoming an artist,which was then a glamorous profession in China.Around late 1970s,however,the Chinese government started to implement political reform and prioritized the development of science and technology to revitalize the entire nation.To meet the more urgent need of the country,I decided to become a scientist.In the fall of 1981,I enrolled in a prestigious university in my hometown to study biology.Four years later I received a bachelor’s degree and worked as a research scientist in the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Beijing.

In early 1989,I came to the US to study for a graduate degree.For an ambitious young man,the opportunity of building his career in the technologically most advanced nation was exciting.But the culture shock of living in a strange land of democracy was by no means a small obstacle.With determination and hard work,however,I earned an MS degree in plant science from the University of Massachusetts in 1992 and a PhD in molecular biology from the University of North Carolina in 1997.

In a splendid autumn a number of years ago,I took a trip to China to visit my family and friends.I happened to stop by the vibrant ancient city,Hangzhou.While strolling along the bank of the famed West Lake,I looked at the vast and placid water shrouded with a drifting mist above it,and suddenly I started questioning about life.I asked myself,what had I done since I set foot on American soil?Many years of hard work in science had allowed me to lead a comfortable middle-class life; however,I still sought a way to express and satisfy my interest in art.I also remember how I stepped into nature as I was contemplating the meaning of life,and how I picked up a camera and started taking pictures in the field over two decades ago.Subsequently photography became my passion and obsession.Back then,however,I still did not know where photography would lead me.The curiosity and fascination of photography have inspired me to continue the exploration of this art form.

My pursuit of photography is pure and free.Photography has provided me with a window to see the world,and has paved a path to comprehend and discover myself.In the process my pursuit of this passion has furnished a means for me to become an artist.Not only have I taken large portfolios of landscape photographs but through selfcriticism and enlightenment,I have also found satisfactory answers to the questions about life.If I have a chance to come to the West Lake again,I shall pick up the threads of thinking I left last time and perhaps walk a little longer until the sun sets behind the Leifeng Pagoda on top of the hill.

序

遥　想

记得尚在年幼时我立志要成为一个有作为的人，但那时我并不知道自己究竟要做什么。我曾从师学习过初级的音乐和绘画，可是并未沿着艺术的道路一直走下去。到了20世纪70年代后期中国开始提倡振兴科技、改革开放，于是我立志要做个科学家。1981年秋我就读于一所名牌大学，学习生物学。毕业之后，我在国家科研机构从事了几年的研究工作。

我于1989年初自费赴美留学，先后在马萨诸塞州、加利福尼亚州和北卡罗来纳州的数所大学院校攻读研究生学位，并从事分子生物学、遗传和生物化学等方面的学术研究。对一个心怀远大志向的年轻人来讲，初次来到科学技术最发达的国度进行深造，确实感到心情无比振奋。而在这片体制和文化完全不同的陌生土地上所身经的文化冲击是个不小的障碍。依靠决心和毅力，我先后于1992、1997年分别获得植物学硕士和分子生物学博士学位。

一年的盛秋时节，在回国探亲访友之际我来到了杭州。漫步在美丽的西湖畔，望着那烟波浩渺的湖水，不禁思绪万千。在浮想中质问自己从踏上美国这片土地以来都做了些什么，又在人生的道路上走到了哪里。几十年中，在科学事业上的刻苦钻研和奋发努力让我有了一个中产阶级的生活。然而对摄影艺术的热爱和追求并没有让我沉醉于一如既往的舒适与安逸之中，而是依然令我深感壮志未酬的鞭策。还想起当年自己在对人生的思考中步入了大自然，又在求索之中拿起了相机。那时对自己在艺术道路上究竟能够走到哪里依然是一无所知；对这一未知的求解成了激励我奋进的目标和动力，依然继续推动着我去不懈地探索。

我对摄影艺术的追求是纯挚的，也是自由的。摄影给予了我一个观看世界的窗口和一条认识与发现自我的途径。在自由探索中发展艺术、造就自身也成为我生活中一项永无止境的执念。通过不断地自觉自悟，我不仅创作出许多影像作品，也终于对人生中的一些重要问题找到了满意的答案。如果再有机会坐在西湖畔观赏湖光的话，我将再续之前的思绪；也许会多坐上几个时辰，一直望到夕阳落下雷峰塔。