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Drawing from Western and East Asian philosophical traditions, this thesis aims to compare different concepts of ‘Pathos’ as present in Chinese, Japanese and European traditions of art, and in particular photography. 

Featured Media

Installation photograph of two black and white artworks hanging on a wall.
The Untitled from Wood, Water, Rock, Inkjet on bamboo paper, 39 x 26 cm and The Untitled from Under the Yuzu Tree, Inkjet on bamboo paper, 60 x 50 cm, Feiyi Wen

©the artist

The overarching methodology is that of translation between different languages and cultural contexts, and the verbal and visual. Using methods from comparative literature and including case studies from East Asian and European poetry, film and artistic practice, the research looks at the tradition of the representation of ‘Landscape’ from Eastern and Western perspectives.

This is a practice-led PhD, and I explore these concepts associated with Pathos and landscape through the media of photography, moving image, object making and bookmaking. I draw parallels between my photographic practice and traditional Chinese landscape painting with respect to the framing, tonality, and non-specificity of place. My investigation of lighting, printing techniques and surfaces are methods for researching the space of the photograph. 

Website:http://feiyiwen.co.uk
Instagram:@feiyi_wen

Supervisors

Primary supervisor: Sharon Morris 
Secondary supervisors: Brighid Lowe, Sarah Pickering