Stunning Fusion between Architecture & Nature

Ancient Temples of Khmer Empire, Cambodia :  

 “When the man overwhelmed the nature with their art, the nature caused its effect on the man-made art later.”

While visiting the ancient temples of Cambodia, I was struck by a strange imagination - of a scenario where a reincarnated soul, which had transformed into a wandering duck, was swimming across the ocean of time and travelling back to the era of the Khmer Empire at 13th century, for the purpose of seeking enlightenment from its master at Bayun.

Such was the evocative power that the ancient temples of the Khmer Empire possessed and the kind of imagination it would evoke.

The images presented here attempted to capture the wonders and imaginations that the ancient temples in the giant tree forest had evoked.

Great merit had to be given to the Conservation Team from India, who had restored Ta-Prohm Temple with a holistic approach -they had conserved the giant trees and the temple monument as a co-existent entity, restoring them to their original state of co-habitation. Their concept of restoration was termed co-existentialism.

This holistic approach of restoration had produced an outcome that was more than the sum of its parts. Taken as a single isolated entity, the temple monument by itself would have commanded spectacular admiration. However, when the giant trees and the temple monument were being conserved together as an combined entity in their natural co-habitation state, they suddenly possessed an aesthetic of another dimensions - an aesthetic that was beyond imagination.

It became obvious and clear that it was the interdependency, connectedness and spatial collision between the giant trees and the temple monument that was of most significance and wonderful.

Indeed, the sight of Ta-Prohm where many giant trees growing out of the collapsing monument was visually stunning and magical – The juxtaposition of man-made architecture verses natural creation, would cause one’s imagination to run wild. 

Hidden Temple： Ta - Prohm (2017)

Stupa: Angkor Watt (2017)

Remains of the Day: Pre-Rup (2017)

Encounter: Bayun (2017)

Reflections: Bayun (2017)

Giant Claws: Ta - Prohm (2017)

Secret Chamber: Ta - Prohm (2017)

Serpent and Maid: Ta Trohm (2017)

JS  .  Photography

September-2017

canon 6D  .  16-35mm/F4