Workshop with Frances on May 1

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Workshop with Frances on May 1

This is about an image that I just suddenly noticed during a

moment of shared mindfulness lead by Frances.

I closed my eyes and when I reopened them, I saw a heart on

the floor. That made me think of:

1. A moment of joy and surprise because I hadn’t noticed it

since I entered the gallery today.

2. I want to photograph it because I want to share it with my

son Connell with whom I share creative moments and

practices – one of those moments is to photograph heart

shaped figures when we suddenly encounter them during

our everyday life (i.e – on the street/ a leaf/ a piece of

food) and then send it to each other.

3. I put hearts on the graves of my loved ones in

Switzerland. This makes me think of life and time. As we

get older, we experience the joys of new lives and the

sadness of the loved ones passing away.

4. Moments like this of suddenly noticing an object or image

can bring joy.

I then get my camera out and take photos of this image on the

floor. As I am doing this, I notice the lights in the room –

different shades – I then go and sit down on the bench holding

my camera – I notice more sounds inside the room and less the

noise outside. I take some photos of the world outside (a taxi

going by) – the world outside hasn’t stopped but I feel more

embodied.

I first met Frances during my doctoral research. She, like many

other individuals in Hong Kong, had shared with me the

motivation for engaging in mindfulness focused practices and

the influence that these practices had in their everyday life in

Hong Kong.

And now, in May 2026, I had the pleasure to spend time in her

photography exhibition Breathing Landscapes – a

collection of stunning photos – the product of her time spent in

the mountains of Japan and Colorado. It takes courage,

perseverance and presence to capture such moments

particularly in a winter environment of altitude, freezing

temperatures and solitude as she did.

When I got asked to pick a preferred photo, I found it hard,

largely because I had started to think of the exhibition as a

whole – a collection of photos exuding calm and silence as a

space in the middle of Hong Kong where I wanted to return to.

To me Breathing Landscapes has now evolved into a whole

image I am thinking of and carrying within me throughout my

everyday life in Hong Kong.

The narratives of everyday life in Hong Kong quite often draw

attention to the intensity of time and space compression which

challenges our capacity to deal with the realities unfolding

around us. Through art and creativity Frances has reminded

me that time and space are not only events in the outside world

but a key reference point and ingredients to my self-narrative.

So well done Frances and thank you Hong Kong for the

poignant reminder.

Prisca Walcher Davidson, Ph.D.

「得力在乎平靜安穩」

參觀完Frances 的「山色·山息」攝影展覽，除了欣賞這些作品的藝術和美感，最重要她讓我們思考薀藏在她作品的內涵和意義。

當我在現場觀看這些山野作息的藝術相片及聆聽Frances親自的導賞期間，我發覺下面這兩句聖經名言非常脗合她的作品：

「我要向山舉目，我的幫助從何而來？」（詩篇121.1）

「凡勞苦擔重擔的人，可以到我這裡來，我就使你們得安息。」（馬太11:28）

這兩句名言告訴我們，我們生活在這世上，時常要面對種種煩惱，包括經濟問題、社會問題、工作壓力、情感創傷、疾病挑戰、失落悲傷、以至靈性迷惘……

當我們感到心力交瘁的時候，我們就要尋求心靈的片刻寧靜，Frances的作品就隱約告訴我，「得力在乎平靜安穩」，我們必須獲得內在的寧靜和平安，才可以重新獲得力量和恩賜，繼續去行走人生的道路！

謝謝Frances 「山色·山息」作品的分享！❤️

Andrew Lu

Hi Frances Tong,

Thank you for inviting me to your exhibition, *Breathing Landscape*. The concept is truly beautiful. I was especially impressed by the way you captured space and stillness—it feels meditative, as though each photograph not only depicts a place, but allows it to “breathe.”

I also loved how clearly the sense of depth comes through. Overall, the collection feels intentional and quietly powerful. Congratulations on this remarkable body of work, and thank you again for allowing me to experience it. I am very proud of you.

Sincerely,

Prim

Frances 的攝影展上, 站在放大了的相片前凝視, 感覺自己的雙腳踏着厚厚的積雪, 如置身在大雪纷飛山上, 眼看滿山白色的雪, 在呼吸間感受到山的氣息, 深觀被雪蓋著的松樹滿有生命力, 當下內心「舒暢」悠然而生。

黑房的體驗尤其特別, 尤如獨自一人在寂靜的山洞內, 呼吸與大山的氣息連接上, 內心是如此「定靜」。

Winsome

Frances，

有幸參加了妳的「天地間的奧跡 · 幕後花絮」導賞團，收穫滿滿。妳的每一幅作品都散發著一種正念 (Mindfulness) 的寧靜美，聽著妳娓娓道來創作背後的故事與構思，更有種豁然開朗的感覺。

​最動人的是看到妳分享時那份真誠的喜悅與感恩。妳在按快門的當下，展現了「一期一會」的意境和對攝影藝術的新突破，這份體悟深深啟發了我。真的很為妳開心！祝福妳繼續在光影中細味這份天地間的奧跡。✨

To FrancesTong

影展色息溶融，形神结合，影技超群，意境深遠。

耄耋歧黃黎照環致意

13/5/2026

Frances的作品有一種空靈意境，又躍動著最本真的生命力。最好的藝術是一条管道，不著痕跡，卻讓那一瞬間的本真感受自由流淌。凝視著這些影像，極致的靜謐，而畫幅深處傳達的情感，卻如此飽滿。

在這裡，值得駐足聆聽的不止是畫面，還有字裡行間流淌的詩歌，以及創作者本身那顆澄澈、豐盈的心靈。這是一處值得你卸下喧囂、靜心凝望的藝術世界。

Frances Tong’s “Breathing Landscapes” offers the opportunity to engage with visual meditations that encourage participants to become aware of the rhythms of the universe as they exist. The interplay of her monochrome photographs implies a meditation on the balance of yin and yang. Reflection of the interplay of breath mediates the balance of energies within the body and the wider cosmos.

Tong’s extensive piece within the collection, “Abundance,” evokes a deep, contemplative humility that resonates through the depiction of withered trees as millet stalks during the golden autumn of harvest time and resonates between fulfillment and transience. With a comment on the harmony of fullness and the moral awareness that accompanies it, Tong thoughtfully refrains from creating work that is overly celebratory. With a restrained tonality, fullness is complicated. The aesthetic choice recalls me the hexagram of the The Book of Changes (Yijing 易經), “Possession in Great Measure (Da You 大有) The Guliang Commentary (穀梁傳) states that “a bountiful harvest of grains signifies a great year,” and suggests the abundance of the agricultural year should not be taken for granted. There is a resonance of humility in her work. Her restrained palette resonates of reverence and humility that reflect the following hexagram, “Modesty” (Qian 謙). Tong’s work reflects a fullness and philosophical modesty that reiterate the ethical consideration for moral abundance. Finally, the interplay of energies beyond that she encourages transcend her work.

初初看，整體有一種朦胧感覺，當你靜下來，那種忽隱忽現的自然畫面就會帶你進入一種生命的深度，原來最美的顏色不是五彩斑斕，而是黑白相間的原始本色！這難道不就是造物主創造的樣樣都好的受造界嗎！美哉！

李Joaquín 神父🙏🎊