This page is an ongoing work in progress for my personal fine art photography projects. Titles and short descriptions below; images and links take you to the relevant gallery. Prints are available – just shoot me an email.
Anatomy of the quotidian (WIP, 2015-) – We see the same things every day, but do we notice them? Do we see how they appear slightly different each time? Do we consider what is inside? Their form, their structure, their designers…how they came to be?
Paradise Lost (WIP, 2015-) – What if machines had souls? This is a look into the retirement of iron heroes from a previous era at a Malaysian air force base: once formidable, now almost forgotten and left to reminisce amongst themselves.
The Idea of Man II (WIP 2015-) – Sequel to The Idea of Man. Once we find ourselves…we must find our place in the greater world, and with others. What will we contribute? Where do we belong?
Broken promises and shattered dreams (WIP, 2012-) – Entropy is an inevitability of the universe; hope is an inevitability of human nature. We exist but for the blink of an eye in the greater scheme of things. Entropy wins; what happens to our dreams in the end? This project is one that’s literally very close to home, as more and more of old Kuala Lumpur falls apart and either slips further into decay, or yet another soulless mixed-use megamall. Personality is going extinct in favour of the corporate.
Only the clouds are truly free (WIP, 2013-) – We all want to have freedom. But we can never escape some anchors; what does it mean to truly be free? Do we wish were were somebody or somewhere or something else? What do we have to give up to leave? Is the dream and the imagination better than the reality?
Paintings with people (WIP, 2013-) – A graphic, semi-surrealist look at snippets of life in a seemingly controlled (but in reality, 100% candid) way.
Crust (WIP, 2015-) – Earth, bread, fractal…hard at one scale, brittle at another. An aerial celebration of what keeps the inside moist.
Crucible (also part of ‘Un/natural’) (2015) – There is a thin line of illusion between the natural and the manmade; one can be so organic as to appear like the other, and the other can be so regular and colourful as to be almost impossible. We see in the images a mirror of our own imaginations.
The Idea of Man (2006-2015) – We are born, we face choices, we are part of the machine. We question our purpose in life; we find individuality; we take our first steps towards independence. We build confidence and find our audience; the sky is the limit. It is the story of life; the story of us.
Dreamscape (2015) – On a long flight, thoughts are like clouds: our jetlagged brains float from one passing idea to another, but in the end, like us as passengers: all are transient, seeming substantial but leaving no trace of their passing. Photographed during a single flight in 2015.
Scenes from a Venetian night (2014) – One rainy evening in Venice. The city is always under threat from water, but somehow always manages to survive. More people pass through it than live there; their brief, ethereal forms are marked by a transit of color – visiting Venice is a highlight for almost all who pass through.
Verticality (2012-2014) – Look up at the base of any tall building and feel the immensity and weight of it looming over you. This series comprises a number of famous international landmarks, and is meant to be printed large and hung well above head height to convey the same monolithic dominance.
Ming Thein | Photographer 