I and the Earth Temple

Author: Shi Tiesheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-09-01
Features: The "Contemporary and Modern Famous Travelers' Essays and Photography Collection" presented to readers has a brand-new visual effect. This novelty allows us, with this substantial achievement, to boldly declare that the banner of a picture-and-word era has been raised. Of course, it is also very old; in the relationship between painting and inscriptions in literati painting during the Ming and Qing dynasties, we can find a solid historical foundation. Reading pictures was once regarded as indicative of immature thinking, superficial emotions, and a restless mind. Yet, it is precisely in reading pictures that we discover an undiminished childlike innocence, lingering vitality, and a lively sensibility. Pictures and words are different in illustrated books; in such books, pictures are merely embellishments that are closely tied to the text. But for picture-and-word books, pictures form their own system, echoing each other in sequence. They are possessed by the text, yet repeatedly slip through the gaps of the words, directly showcasing their light and color to the world and attracting the text to possess them once more.