A piece in the collection about environment that won Vietnam’s Hoang Quoc Tuan the master title from FIAP.

A self-taught Vietnamese professional has been conferred the title of Master Photographer by the International Federation of Photography Art for his collection that plays “concern of the environment.”

“This is something I never dared dream of,” 51-year-old Tuan said.

Titled Su tran tro cua thien nhien (Concern for the environment), the collection comprises 20 photos taken over nine years.

The collection was inspired by the first one taken in 2001 showing a fish in the dirty sea with only its bone, which earned Tuan an award for excellence from the Vietnam Association of Photographic Artists.

Most photos in the collection were made from a square tray before a mixture of watercolors and pastel was poured in as Tuan said he wanted to show the feeling of being imprisoned and surrounded.

The idea about living in a stuffy atmosphere came from his experience of traveling on crowded and dusty streets, which “would show more charm if girls don’t have to cover up all their faces,” said Tuan, a Ho Chi Minh City resident.

One tray showed logs on a ferocious river and another showed birds eggs in a nest flowing in a river.

Tuan said he had dreams about these scenes and he would quickly write them down on waking up.

He had to shoot the photo quickly, in 15-30 minutes, or the colors would change.

Tuan said he’s loved painting since age he was in his teens. He learnt the skills from a relative and once removed all the doors of chicken cages in his house to make a frame for his painting.

When attending the HCMC Education College, he took a part-time job painting portraits and oil paintings, selling them to galleries on Dong Khoi Street.

Later as a teacher, Tuan started to take photographs and since leaving school due to a lung condition, has been living on photography.

Tuan said the winning collection was a combination of photography and painting, with occasional help from Photoshop.

In 2003, Tuan had been honored as an excellent international photographer by FIAP.

Source: Tuoi Tre