Quinn Ryan Mattingly is an American freelance photographer and photojournalist who has been based in Vietnam for over a decade. His photojournalism career began in 2009 when he first undertook a photographer position at a magazine in Saigon. Since then, he has taken on assignments for notable clients such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, World Health Organization, and The Global Fund, among many others. In addition to editorial and commercial assignments, Mattingly dedicates himself to a series of personal projects, including his ongoing series, Under Great Northern Skies. Inspired by his first trip to the rural regions of Northern Vietnam in 2007, the project would not officially begin until 2011 when Mattingly became reacquainted with the region on a work assignment. Since then, he has visited the region at least once per year to explore new areas and to create new images. Mattingly tells us more about the series below in his own words.
美国自由摄影师和摄影记者Quinn Ryan Mattingly已经在越南生活了10多年。他的新闻摄影生涯开始于2009年，当时他在西贡一间杂志担任摄影师的工作。从那时起，他开始为许多著名的客户工作，包括《纽约时报》（The New York Times）、华盛顿邮报（The Washington Post）、世界卫生组织和全球基金(The Global Fund)。除了杂志和商业作品，Mattingly还一直致力打造一系列的个人项目，包括他目前正在进行的《Under Great Northern Skies》系列。这个摄影项目的灵感源于他在2007年第一次探访越南北部农村地区的旅程，但项目正式开始是在2011年，当时Mattingly因为工作原因，再次踏足这个地区。从那时起，他每年至少都会到这里一次，去探索新的领域，创作新的影像。以下是有关这个系列Mattingly自己更详细的介绍。
“In my travels, I don’t think I’ve ever found a nation that differs so vastly from north to south as Vietnam. According to my own, admittedly fabricated, lore, I imagine the great hills and sharp peaks of the north as the scaly, rugged head of the dragon. The body winds its way down the majestic panoramas of coastline, ending in a collection of tails in the Mekong Delta.”
“在我的旅行经历中，我从来没见过像越南这样，北部与南部地区差异如此之大的国家。在我的想像中，越南北部的大山和尖峰就像是一条龙布满鳞片、崎岖不平的头，它的身躯沿着雄伟的海岸线，蜿蜒向下，尾巴直达湿润的湄公河三角洲。
“These images, captured on several excursions in the region over the years, are a look at the lives and land of Vietnam’s great North. Busy city streets are nowhere to be found. Instead, bikes barely more durable than scooters ply their way up and down the pastoral slopes on imperfect trails, and trucks wind their way through endless curvature as the roads ascend and fall, all at a snail’s pace compared to the clip of city life. The work that sustains life comes in a much more manual flavor than it does in the cities as well, where even most earn a living only by long days and sweat of the brow. Here, a living can only be borrowed from the soil. Nothing valuable is given without effort.”
“这些照片是我几年来多次到这里旅行时所拍摄的，它们展示了越南北部地区的生活和土地。这里没有繁忙的城市街道。在这里，自行车比摩托车稍稍更耐用，人们骑着自行车沿着充满田园风光的山坡，在小路上来来回回，而货车则顺着蜿蜒的道路左右拐弯，随着路面上下起伏，和城市里的快节奏相比，这里的一切都像是在以蜗牛的速度进行着。比起城市的工作，人们维持生计的工作更多的是手工劳作，大部分人需要以长时间的劳作和汗水来谋生。在这里，生活只能从土壤中获得。没有任何事物可以不费力气就轻易获得。
“And of course the faces are measurably different too. The Kinh language and features so familiar to us who’ve spent time in Vietnam are traded for ethnic features, dress, and cultures in numerous varieties – 54 if I’m not mistaken.”
“越国各地人们的面部特征也是截然不同。我们在越南生活了一段时间，已经十分熟悉京族（Kinh）人的五官特征和语言，但越南各地还有非常多不同的民族，如果我没有记错，应该是有54个民族，它们在民族特色、服装和文化上都非常迥异。
“These hills hold great intrigue for me, offering sights and scenes not found anywhere else in the country, and I will surely make my way back again soon, when I hear the dragon calling myself and my lens away from the city and toward the great northern skies.”
“（越南北部）这些山丘对我来说有着巨大的吸引力，这里有着越南其它地方所没有的风景，我一定还会再回来这里的，当我内心又再一次听到这条‘龙’的呼唤，我会带上我的镜头远离城市，朝着北方的天空出发。”
