And you are the interpreter.
Phillip and Suelle Williams, who put together the pictorial perspective of Guyana (imaged left), certainly seem to think the story about a picture is what the beholder sees there. Their 40-page collection of photographs, titled Lovely Guyana, has no captions or labels. They just simply invite us to enjoy the stories waiting to be told.
True to the promise of something to talk about or something to remember, each individual photograph is rich with dimensions and images to facilitate several stories. There is for instance the one of a coconut tree full of the fruit, shot from below. For those of us who have to settle for a can of coconut water, the pic is both a sweet reminder / keepsake view of the real source, and one that could induce wistful longing for something that is out of reach. For the romantic viewer, there are the dreamy shots of sunsets and dawns, and the shots of lush greenery dotted with vivid, striking colors of flowers. Birds, bodies of water, a Rupununi mountain, and sand and rock surfaces also provide plenty of fodder for stories of Guyana's natural settings.
Then there are the individual photographs of man-made structures--modes of transportation, forms of communication, types of habitat--which tell stories of Guyana's past and present.
Two "people" shots, one of a woman looking at the camera, and another of a couple sitting on a bridge backing the camera, allow the viewer to conjure up stories about what he or she imagines is taking place between the photographer and the subject(s), and between the subjects (in the couple pic).
And there's more...
Beyond the individual stories, the collection takes on a profound philosophical tone, which can be found in the juxtaposed photographs. The viewer is invited to contemplate several interesting opposites: performance and arrangement opposite candidness; fruitful opposite barren; endurance opposite decay; cultured/well-tended opposite untended/wild; crowding opposite space...
The viewer is also invited to contemplate similarities in things he or she might not normally expect--similarities for instance in form and structure that bring the old and the new a lot closer together than one might expect.
Overall, the collection of photographs in Lovely Guyana is both fun and serious. One can contemplate deeply or browse lightly, reminisce, and learn. But perhaps most importantly, you'll definitely get perspectives of Guyana which will allow you to go beyond the skewed pics and politics typically seen in the news. I encourage you to get your own copy and interpret for yourselves.
Bonus: If you'd like facts to accompany your interpretations (I did), you can get them here.
Enjoy!
Lovely Guyana: A Pictorial Perspective. Phillip and Suelle Williams (copyright 2009).
