Egrets are part of the beautiful landscape in the countryside, as they also signify a transformation and interpretation of oriental aesthetics. As Li Bai depicted, “an egret skims over autumn waters; floating down singly, a flake of frost.” The poetic image suggests the quiet, secluded, carefree and elegant temperament of literati and artists. Lin Chuan-tsu admired the elegance, loneliness and freedom of egrets, or the literati’s egret-like loftiness of ancient times, or yearned for a carefree lifestyle, thus leaving countless related images.
The ever-changing posture of egrets is one of the constant themes of Lin Chuan-tsu’s creation. From the 1950s to the early 1970s, several related series were created.
The subtlety of the Taking Flight from the Bamboo Branches lies in the fact that it represents the decisive moment when the egret flaps its wings and takes flight. The critical moment between repose and embarking creates a balanced and intense tension in the picture. The black-and-white scale and lines of the branches and the egrets, the changes in light and shadow, and the composition make the viewer feel that the egrets are about to rise with the wind and embrace the future.
Sun Wei-xuan, “2021 Compilation and Research Project of Metadata in Photography.”