The Tin Mine Landscapes are arguably Eric Peris’ most significant contribution to Malaysian art history. The series, taken in the late 1970s, originally numbered forty one images which were published in a book by the same name in 1980. Twenty three images from the published series survived and were transferred, fortunately, into digital format. Fortunately - because the original negatives have disintegrated . The digital transfer not only rescued memory and narrative, but also provides a contemporary format for these iconic works. TheTin Mine Landscapes are printed in an Edition of 10, in C-Type print,at sizing of 54in x 38in or 27in x 19in.
The body of work is significant for a number of reasons, not least of which is strong aesthetic content. The images speak to the history of a nation, since a significant portion of the region's early wealth and thus nation building resources, was derived from tin mines. These landscapes have been lost to development, and thus ironically, continuing economic wealth has contributed to their erasure. The concept of Impermanence (or ‘Anicca’ as it is termed in Buddhism) has been explored repeatedly in this body of work and throughout Peris’s expansive and illustrious career.
The clarity and tranquility of the images indicate Peris‘s state of mind at the time of photographing. He embarked on a journey,specifically to photograph these landscapes, soon after the death of his mentor and hero, his father. This emotional passage of the young Peris was one of the factors that perhaps operated to create a brilliance in these works - in the stillness and movement, the clarity of the light and the meditative quality of the images. Found in these works are themes of abandonment, rejuvenation, preservation and extinction. They are presented for the first time since their capture, as a series, in this exhibition. The format of this document incorporates some contemplative references from Eric Peris’s original Tin Mine Landscapes publication (published in 1980 and now out of print).
Image: © Eric Peris, Shalini Ganendra Fine Art
