The footprints of famous Portuguese poet Luis Vaz de Camões in Macau was the central theme of this year’s edition of Macau CLOSER ‘s Photography Competition entitled ‘Myth or Reality’. The winning photos were submitted by António Leong, Joana Freitas, Nicholas Mok and Kuang Ziyang and are currently exhibited at the Portuguese Bookshop gallery along with other entrants’ works.
Camões’ life and presence in the city was chosen at this year’s theme as 2024 marks the 500th anniversary of the birth of the poet who spent time in Macau.
“More important than knowing whether or not Camões was in Macau is realising whether his presence is still visible in the city today, and if so, where,” says the introductory text of the photographic competition, which has now been transformed into an exhibition.
The challenge posed to the city’s photographers and photography enthusiasts was precisely to try to show Camões’ presence in the city today, either through his physical presence or metaphorically through the words of his poems. The competition was divided into two sections: individual photography and series.
The winner in the individual photography category was António Leong, receiving MOP8,000 for an image he named ‘The Sakura Poet’. António commented that most local residents only remember the poet’s presence through the Camões Grotto, however, he wanted to show a more abstract side.
“I’m not a man of letters, but what Camões reminds me of are his love poems; and the most direct visual relationship of love, for me, must be flowers. That’s how I found this image.”
António admits that when he enters this type of competition, he never thinks about winning, “Especially this one, whose theme was Camões, a very poetic and abstract theme.”
António’s winning photo depicts the statue of Camões in the Taipa Municipal Garden, among the garden’s flowers and with buildings serving as a backdrop.
Second place in this individual photography category was awarded by the jury to Joana Freitas, with an image entitled ‘A Pena’, which also shows the statue of Camões sculpted by local artist Wong Ka Long in the Taipa Municipal Garden.
Joana explained that she wanted to get away from the well-known Camões grotto, opting instead for the statue in the Carmo area of Taipa.
“I wasn’t expecting to win second place and I’m delighted. It’s a nice surprise because I’m not a professional photographer,’ she said.
A journalist here in Macau, Joana recalls that her interest in photography began at an early age when she used her parents’ cameras to record certain moments: “It’s something that’s already in me, maybe also because I’m a journalist I have this thing about recording everything. I like the concept of being able to store memories and freeze certain moments.”
“Today, my love of photography continues precisely because when I travel around Asia, I see so many new things. Even if they’re not new, there are things that deserve to be remembered because they’re aesthetically beautiful or tell me something. The photogenic nature of Macau helps to keep this interest alive in me,’ she said.
In the series category, the competition judges chose Nicholas Mok’s photographs of scenes of daily life next to the statue of the poet in Jardim de Camões.
“Through these images, we glimpse the immortal verses of Camões’ poetry. It’s as if someone is singing, resonating in every corner, while others use their imagination to conjure up something magical,” said Mok in the presentation of his series, which also was awarded an MOP8,000 prize.
“When I first saw the theme of this photography competition, I thought it was a bit abstract. Later, I read about Camões‘ footprints in Macau and I was inspired,” said Nicholas, who started taking photographs in 2018. The photographer also pointed out that winning the competition in the series segment was “undoubtedly a great surprise” and “an incentive for the future”.
Second place in this category went to Kuang Ziyang, with a series he called ‘Breath of White’. This series is “a poetic leap from Camoes, a kind of poetics that derives from the “blank space” of the scene,” he describes, adding: “When I was shooting portraits, I wanted to try not to make the subject’s eyes the first point of focus from the start, so I created this series of photographs, inspired by my friend and the collection of faded poetry I had on hand.”
Pointing out that he likes Portuguese poetry, especially Camões and Pessoa, Kuang Ziyang explained that the series aims to express his “panic”.
“I was about to graduate and didn’t know what to do. Life was like a giant spider’s web,” he recalled, adding that he didn’t expect this second place: “On the contrary, I was surprised that the organisers chose my work with its abnormal exposure and distorted composition.”
