Aside from Pamela Andersonยs boobs, the Great Wall of China may be the most photographed man-made thing in existence. Its majestic aura, colossal size and endless crevices (yes, weยre still talking about the Wall) have fascinated countless photographers. But few have gotten as intimate with it as Chen Changfen, whoยs been exploring the Wall since 1959, and some of his best work is on display at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houstonยs ยThe Great Wall of China.ย The exhibit includes both haunting black-and-white shots of individual parts of the Wall and large-scale, lush color prints of the Wall against the surrounding mountain ranges. Weยll call the first close-ups and the second money shots.
This article appears in Apr 5-11, 2007.