《遺碎
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小山區太極班的歷史》
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布愛理攝影圖片展
溫哥華最高點小山區是女皇公園的巢穴。自一九六五年建成水塘並於其上架上木板的平台和通道後，很多華人團社便一早上山去練太極，無論日曬和雨淋。在這裏，高高於城市之上，晨早的空氣特別清新，而一天剛開始，“氧”是優質。
我第一次在小山區看到人練習太極的時候，感到無限的趣味。多個團體一起練習，同時覺得優美和混亂。不同的音樂和太極的口號一同迴響，劍棍又齊飛。一大群穿著紅色外套的女仕，隨著音樂做著整齊的一致動作；但另一群人則揮舞著絲巾。成年人在教導青少年和兒童。
二零零零年秋天，我開始每當閒餘時候，大清早走到小山區去觀看太極的練習。當時我剛從外地遷回溫哥華居住，對於我的前途仍感到一片茫然。一天，一位經常帶著報章的長者告訴我，應該跟隨他十五位在學習楊家太極拳的學生上課，他姓馬。我說，師叔我可以嗎？他表示歡迎我加入；於是，我便學起了這一門無論在文化上或環境方面，都令人感到充滿靈感的古老藝術。每天，師叔特別挑出我和另外一些少數同門，悉心教導。
新的學徒不斷加入我們的太極班。有些人只會說國語，而另外一些人則只說廣東話。這是剛到溫哥華的新移民，最好融入社會的地方。偶爾，有一、兩位外籍人仕。一位在加拿大廣播電台及電視公司工作的女士，每個週末都來上課；另一位耍劍的俄羅斯婦人，則從不允許我給她拍照。
當我知道公園局要改建水塘，拆毀木台通道，太極班要面臨解散時，我開始為這些晨運的人士拍照，以期保留一些記憶。這個地區終於二零零一年底關閉。這是一個時代的結束，一段溫哥華珍貴的歷史。水塘現已重建，並將於不久的將來重新開放給大眾。我祈望小山區的太極傳統仍能繼續下去，代代相傳。
我將這個展覽呈獻給馬師叔，所有同我一齊分享他們對太極的知識，和所有曾在小山區練太極的朋友。
Fragments – History of Tai Chi at the Little Mountain
(Elain
Briere) Photographic Exhibition
Vancouver
photographer Elaine Briere is known for her use of photography for
advocacy. Her works have been shown in prestigious galleries from Sweden
to Japan, but the most famous of them is probably her book "East Timor -
Testimony ", published in May, 2004. The black and white photographs
quietly evoke a people undergoing a struggle to rid itself of a colonial
nightmare. Her non-intrusive approach in taking the photographs often
capture images of people in their natural demeanor and dignity
irrespective of whatever unpleasant or destitute situation they are in.
As Jeet Heer wrote in a review (National Post /June 17, 2004) "What is
striking about her portraits is the eyes of her subjects.....we don't
just stare at Brière's people: They also stared back at us”. David
Webster also pointed out in the
Introduction to the book, “No matter how many times they are photocopied
they lose none of the evocative beauty”.
For over
25 years the Chinese community has been drawn to Little Mountain, also
known as Queen Elizabeth Park, to practice Tai Chi, Lik Tung Kuen and
Wai Tan. Any day of the week, early in the morning regularly one could
see scores of people on the wooden walkways and platforms behind the
planetarium. The “Chi” is believed to be particularly good on top of
Little Mountain where the air is fresh and views of the surrounding area
uplifting. The Tai Chi groups and others eventually came to a stop in
2003 when the Parks Board decided to close the reservoir area for
re-vamping and demolished all the wooden walkways and platforms. Before
that, Elaine was with the class for two years participating in
exercises, as well as documenting the various groups as a historical
record of a unique time and place. The Chinese Cultural Centre wanted to
dedicate this exhibition to the celebration of a way of community life
that has become a communal memory.
