Fisherwoman of the Mekong River

This fisherwoman image shot near Vientiane in Laos is part of the “Of Rivers and Mantras: the Mekong System” series which was shot using a Hasselblad medium format film camera, the film then cross processed and custom drum scanned by myself in order to ensure that the very specific analog tonal values that I desired were achieved.

Data reflecting the effects of climate change and the continual building of hydroelectric dams on the hydrology of the Mekong River and the surrounding ecosystems including the Tonle Sap Lake is often complicated and subject to various interpretations.  For this reason one of the main objectives of this project is to emphasize the humanity of those whose methods of survival are intrinsically impacted by these abstract sets of data in very direct ways.

The series was exhibited in New York and Phnom Penh. The image of Pan Downcast which was shot near Phnom Penh, Cambodia is from the same series.