CNN
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A young Shaolin monk runs horizontally across a wall, an expression of intense concentration and perhaps surprise on his face. Four other trainees at a martial arts academy near the Shaolin Temple in China’s Henan province were casually relaxing, seemingly unaware of the gravity-defying action taking place above them. Their bright orange robes and Feiyue sneakers stand in sharp contrast to the earthen wall behind them.
The blurred back of the man on the left side of the image emphasizes the sharp movement in its center. In the background, a monk is stretching, showing off his dexterity by doing a split-legged stance.
“There was a high level of action,” photographer Steve McCurry told CNN in a video call from his home in Philadelphia about the composition of the photo. “And the other boys are just hanging out.”
This image, along with other photographers’ work, will be featured in Magnum’s Square Print Sale, which ends on May 5th. He photographed this piece as part of a personal project in his 2004 travels around the world documenting various forms of Buddhism. Although McCurry does not consider himself a Buddhist, he has long been interested in the religion and applies some of its principles to his life.
Shaolin Monastery was built in 495 AD on the slopes of the sacred Matsuyama and is said to be the home of Chan Buddhism. Although the religion emphasizes nonviolence, the temple’s monks initially practiced martial arts to protect themselves from bandits. Over time, their rigorous physical training became closely tied to their quest to achieve enlightenment.
Today, Shaolin Kung Fu is widely known, and the monks’ athletic feats are imitated in popular movies. The 1982 film “Shaolin Temple” launched Jet Lee’s career, was filmed on location, and was one of his films that brought renewed interest in this monastery. By the time of Mr. McCurry’s visit in 2004, dozens of martial arts schools had sprung up along the road leading to the temple.
“It’s incredible to see their performance and training,” he said. “You can’t even imagine that a person could actually do that with their own body.”
After graduating from Penn State University, McCurry began his career at a local newspaper. She then began traveling abroad as a freelance photographer, photographing people in some of the world’s most dangerous and remote areas.
His career began in earnest when he sneaked across the border from Pakistan to Afghanistan in 1979, just before the Soviet Union invaded. He smuggled the film hidden in his clothes, giving the world the first photographs of the conflict that has killed at least 500,000 Afghans and displaced millions.
His 1984 “Afghan Girl” photo, which captured the piercing green eyes of a 12-year-old refugee in Peshawar, Pakistan, appeared on the June 1985 cover of National Geographic magazine. , one of the most famous photographs in the world.
Over a 50-year career, McCurry, now 74, has photographed animals, festivals, worshipers and fighters, conflicts and catastrophes in destinations from Niger to India, and filled out more than 20 passports. . He captures the curiosity of the ancient and the modern, the everyday, and highlights the friendliness of strangers.
In 2016, McCurry came under fire after it was discovered that one of his photographs in an exhibition had been digitally altered. Although he said it happened in a studio during a trip, more images that appeared to be doctored began to surface, sparking a debate over the ethics of photojournalism.
In response to the allegations, the photographer told Time magazine later that year that he had never been employed by a newspaper, news magazine, or news organization, except for a brief stint at a local newspaper in Pennsylvania. As a freelancer, he took on various assignments, including advertising campaigns. He said his own work has “moved into the fine art field” and that he considers himself a “visual storyteller.”
He understands that this may “confuse people who still think I’m a photojournalist,” and that from now on, “even my own work taken on personal travels.” He added that he would only use Photoshop “in a minimal way.”
Jeremy Horner/Lightrocket/Getty Images
Shaolin Temple or Shaolin Temple is a Chan Buddhist temple located in Songshan, Dengfeng, Zhengzhou.
“I’ll come back again and again.”
Before photographing monks running on walls, McCurry had already visited Shaolin Temple 20 years ago. On his first trip, he said, “there were really no people,” and all he saw were “bicycles and people in Mao suits.”
By the time he returned home, a kung fu craze had engulfed the country. The area had a more commercial feel, he recalled. Tens of thousands of (mostly) Chinese boys and girls were inspired by the wave of Kung Fu films and trained in dozens of schools in the region.
The photographer obtained permission at one of the academies and spent several days with the monks as they went about their daily lives, including repeatedly practicing acrobatics. Some of the boys dined with McCurry at the noodle joint across the street and shared his desire to eventually work in security services, performance groups or even the entertainment industry. “They were normal kids,” he said. “But they were very enthusiastic and serious about this practice.”
During his stay, he also took other photographs of the monks’ intense training regime. Among them were several people hanging upside down by their feet, silently holding hands and posing in prayer.
McCurry sought to find the right combination of variables such as subject, angle, light, and background as the monks perfected their movements. “It’s about taking pictures and coming back again and again.”
His patience paid off. “This is a picture that evokes many emotions,” he said of the final shot of the monk running against the wall. “It either brings a smile to people’s faces or they’re kind of in awe of the physical ability of these young boys.”
