Here at Jade Prints we don’t like to mess too much with reality when it comes to processing our pictures. Naturally our fine art iterations take a few more liberties when it comes to colour, but on the whole, the scene we present to you is the scene that was presented to us. Exceptions can be made for stray rubbish or fluorescent orange clad tourists (see A Giant Day Out!!) but removal is usually limited to distracting objects that don’t contribute to the experience.
Just the other day a client commissioned a fine art version of an existing image in our gallery (Li River Reflections). After the finished rendering was sent for final approval, the customer made the ultimate request: could we remove the boats on the left side to leave the wandering fisherman alone in the image. Who were we to say “no”? So we set to work on the painstaking task of eliminating the chaos from the setting.
What we were left with was astonishingly closer to our memory of the scene than expected. In the beauty of the moment, all of the surrounding chatter and activity melted away into oblivion leaving the serenity of the man, and that is what we actually hold in our mind’s eye.
This new image brings a fresh calm to the scene that we would never have dared evoke but for the intrepid client request!
About the picture: Yangshuo in China is famous for its rivers and karsts. What better way to explore both than in a boat (preferably with a bamboo base and rickity chairs!) At several points in the journey, you have to coast over the edge of a dam into the water below. The first time is a bit daunting but then you just learn to go with it (and lift your feet so they don’t get wet!) The dam that is featured in this picture was quite busy so there was a bit of a bottleneck of boat traffic at the only crossable point. Meanwhile the locals were going about their business traversing the dam to their usual fishing spot. This solitary figure conveyed a certain peace and serenity to the moment.