The Beauty Within

ArcLight Cinemas

I remember it was a cold dark quiet Brooklyn night. As I am looking out the window, shooting a book popped into my mind. It was quite sudden and I said “ok” not knowing that in a few months time, I will be doing just that.

It is an eye-opening experience to live, learn, and see a culture of new traditions. I was imagining the other side of the world and it dawned on me I was ready to travel. What is different in this approach is someone or some event will lead me to the image. Nothing was ever planned by me.
Shooting while in a moving vehicle, and at waist-level, this is my visual diary and these are the images that came my way. I am incredibly grateful to return to the ArcLight to showcase my most favourite works from this series. This has been my journey of seeing ‘the beauty within’.
One love,
Monique Lai
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Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote ‘life is a journey, not a destination’ and that has never been more clear when I jumped into the uncertain world of traveling with no destination in mind. This world will be ‘my new normal’. The camera — my constant companion, taking memories of the experience. Documenting this journey and meeting people has inspired and validated my love for culture and for architecture. This is my blueprint — FREEZE FRAME: The Beauty Within.

On a double decker bus in Hong Kong, I view this magnificent city passing me by. With my small camera in hand, I take super-quick moments that turned out to be my most precious lucky shots !

Without needing to see the viewfinder, this shooting style became the basis of this work.

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Framed Artwork & Prints
Two men in a blue tractor drive towards the hills in the Gansu Province.
'The Beauty Within' Exhibition Poster

For fun, I tested the old-school technique of holding the camera at waist-level, but this time I am shooting without looking through the viewfinder.

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

— Marcel Proust

There are no words to express how grateful I am to showcase this body of work of my travels in Asia.

It is a book I hope will find the right publisher.

‘The Beauty Within’ showcases my love for architecture and construction. Each city or village I visit, I notice how design plays a pivotal role in their daily lives. 
5 Oct – 13 Dec 2016
Dates
9500 Culver Blvd., Culver City, California
ArcLight Culver City
Paul Tam, Digital Force
Gordon Cheung, Zetter Picture Framer
Sharon While, Installation Designer
Joe Wong, Graphic Designer
Kale Hills, Khodr Cherri
Special Thanks
ArcLight Cinemas
Zetter Picture Framer
Digital Force
A&I Fine Art

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