Spiritual Utopia III

Introduction

Spiritual Asia

Hidden in the tropical forests of Luang Prabang, the Ta Kuang Si waterfall cascades crystal clear water from a height of over 60 metres. The scene takes on an almost supernatural appearance when hundreds of Buddhist monks in luminous orange-red robes make their annual pilgrimage to this holy site. In Buddhism, the waterfall symbolises the source of life, the link between heaven and earth. For centuries, it has played a prominent role as a ritual place of worship for monks from different monasteries.

Fascinated by the transcendent harmony that radiates from this spiritual encounter between man and nature, Rui Camilo has documented these extraordinary moments. The photographer approaches the imposing Ta Kuang Si like a set designer. The monks gather at the foot of the falls on the shore of the turquoise basin, bathed in the magical blue-green light of the jungle. The balanced combination of colour, light, and perspective seems to transform this scene into an earthly paradise, a spiritual garden of Eden. We are invited to stay a while, to feel its contemplative energy surge through us.

Bio

1964	Born in Lisbon
1990-1995	Studied Communications Design at FH Wiesbaden
	Lives and works in Wiesbaden, Germany

Awards

2008	2nd Place, Canon Profashional Award
1995	Art Contest Award, Wege aus der Gewalt, German Federal Ministry for Women and Children
1994	1st Prize in the Buber Rosenzweig Foundation's Design Contest in Bad Nauheim, Poster design for The Week of Brotherhood

Exhibitions

2004	contemporary photography meets ware, (mit TAPE10), U.F.O.
2003	elektro village, (mit TAPE10), Museum  für Angewandte Kunst, Köln
1993	land escape, snape gallery, Snape1989
	Tausend Berliner, Galerie Chrysmart, (anlässlich der Rencontres d`Arles), Arles

Group Exhibitions

2005	Deutschlandbilder, Landesmuseum Wiesbaden, Wiesbaden, Germany
2003	Elektro Village, Museum für Angewandte Kunst, Cologne, Germany
2003	Experimenta Design, Lisbon, Portugal