Burmese Light
Impressions of the Golden Land
Burmese Light
Burma is a moment in time.
Positioned at the crossroads of South Asia and blessed with a vast cultural heritage, Burma is a land of lost cities, crumbling pagodas and mountainous lakes, serene river settings, beautiful beaches, remote jungles, and as yet inaccessible snow-capped peaks. A wonderful, quiet and dignified charm, an almost serene innocence, borne of decades of isolation, permeates the country. Photographer Hans Kemp and writer Tom Vater set off to capture some of the sights and stories at the bright and otherworldly heart of Burma. Burmese Light is the result of many journeys, of early mornings and late nights, of fleeting and lingering encounters, of solitary observation and vibrant interaction. Burmese Light should serve as a visually illuminating introduction to a land that is, as Kipling noted, unlike any other.
Hans Kemp - Tom Vater
The smile of a woman passing on the street, her face half obscured by thanaka, the hiss of a paddle as it slices through the placid waters of Inle Lake, the thrill of rumbling across a rickety bridge in a dilapidated railway carriage, the smoke that rises from fried food by the road side in Yangon, the exuberant dance of a natkadaw, a medium in touch with a spirit in Taungbyone, the silence punctuated by a lone bird call deep in the jungles of Chin State.
“Whether you are planning a visit or have recently traveled to Myanmar, Hans Kemp’s magnificent photographs combined with Tom Vater’s illuminating text create an unforgettable portrait of a truly remarkable country where light, landscape and culture leave an everlasting impression.” Art Wolfe - Renowned photographer and TV host of Travels to The Edge.
Hans Kemp Text by Tom Vater
Photography by