There I was, driving along the moat road in Chiangmai, Thailand, and I saw a new Buddha statue/shrine/idol (take your pick) being erected a one of the many temples here in town. Since this was one of those few times I was driving alone, I instantly realized my wife would not even have to put up with me for stopping this time. I could not pass up such a good opportunity.
The truck was stopped. I was up the stairs in seconds. The workers could not have been more happy to let me observe for a few minutes. You can see a couple more images on my Flickr site, if you are interested.
The scene fit so perfectly into what I am really trying to capture. My whole approach to photography is to capture the true reality of a situation. I know, ‘true’ and ‘reality’ are basically synonymous, but the word ‘truth’ is commonly redefined by mankind, and has been for thousands of years, so it needs a little clarification from time to time. I only mean to say the real one…ha, as if I were the one to say.
We forget to ask the questions that really matter and really lead us to truth, even though so many seek it. If God is true, how can I know he is really here? How can I know he is the true True God? When everybody claims to be right, how can we know who really is?
These are important questions, all of which have answers, if we really want to find them. And no, that does not mean “we all have our own truth” or any such garbage. It is quite evident from watching the news any one day that “our own truth” does not work and is not, indeed, true at all. If I say it is right to massacre people because of creed or color, is it true because I say it is? Of course not. So, what is the standard of truth? That takes us right back to the original question of how we know when we have really found the truth.
And that is what I want to photograph. I want to visually capture the moments when everyday life reveals truth. I capture it so I (and we) can sit and look at it, because for me and for most of us, we pass the facts by all day long and just accept some spoon fed reality or ignore the truly important facts. What is <b>really</b> going on here?
In this photo, we have a story unfolding. For years and years to come, this statue will be decorated, worshipped, and given sacrifices of incense. Here we see the true beginnings of this object of worship. More clearly, we see this god’s creation, as opposed to seeking out the non-created god. It is painted concrete. It has scaffolding to allow workmen to climb around it and get it ready for service. And one day, this yellow paint will fade. What is the true reality behind the perceived reality?
