At the May Forum Tuan Pham will open his albums for you to see how his artistic personality has evolved. He credits the NVPS portfolio projects for the inspiration and accidental encounter with Zen Art. As you probably know, Zen art is never intended for pure utility or pure aesthetic enjoyment. It is also to train the mind and bring it into contact with ultimate reality. Tuan will share several collections, including Old Man's Bird Photography, Mo-Jo's Drama, Drive-by Shootings, Simple is Super, Photographs from Intuition, and Forever Young. 

Tuan Pham joined NVPS in 2005, after a basic course in photography and acquiring his first DSR with social security proceeds. He is a seasoned meditation practitioner and amateur nature photographer, with a score of ribbons to his credit, eight images juried into the Meadowlark/Nature Vision 2011, and one to represent NVPS at the 2011 George W. Glennie Nature Competition. Tuan learned photography largely by reading books and magazines, and occasional workshops on creative vision with Joseph Miller, Freeman Patterson, and Andre Gallant, among others. He also draws inspiration from the works of Zen Master John Daido Roshi, Minor White, French impressionist painter Claude Monet, and Japanese haiku Master Matsuo Basho. Photography helps him see deeply without the camera and gives him great joy, particularly when photography and Zen touch to spark a serene inner setting and profound attunement to the present moment.

Tom Burden

TomBurden "at"me.com