“Photography is a medium of formidable contradictions. It is both ridiculously easy and almost impossibly difficult. It is easy because its technical rudiments can easily be mastered by anyone with a few simple instructions. It is difficult because while the artist working in any other medium begins with a blank surface and gradually brings his conceptions into being, the photographer is the only image maker who begins with the pictures completed. His emotions, his knowledge and his native talent are brought into focus and fixed beyond recall the moment the shutter of his camera closes.” Edward Steichen (1879-1974)

ARTIST STATEMENT

INTIMACY - When asked what the most important element is in my photography, my answer would be "Intimacy". Whether I am photographing the landscapes or photographing people, there is a level of intimacy and connectivity involved. Granted that composition and techniques are mastered, what is left for the photographer to do is to deliver a feeling in his or her images. Without some emotional involvement with her subjects, her images would be lifeless.....Nature is my passion, and through my lens I try to capture the beauty and the grandeur of Nature.

I am a self-taught photographer. I started by teaching myself Ansel Adams Zone system in order to photograph nature and the landscapes. I used to love the darkroom - and even slept in it on occasion - but decided to embrace the new digital revolution when it arrived. Except for the technical differences in the darkroom and on the computer, I do not see any differences between traditional and digital photography. Photography, after all, is all about LIGHT - and about what one sees at that perfect moment when LIGHT so beautifully illuminates and transforms the landscapes.....

Vi is a landscape photographer. Her works include Napa Valley, the California Coast, Death Valley, the Sierra Nevada, Vietnam, Italy, Ireland, Cambodia. Vi taught photography at Napa Valley College Upper Campus and leads a yearly Photographic, Culinary, Art and Travel workshop to Viet Nam, where she was originally from.

Vi's Fine Art Landscape Photography is in the permanent collection of Robert Mondavi Winery, Domaine Chandon Winery, Napa Valley Lodge, Bodega Bay Lodge, and other venues. Her work of "Farm workers in the Napa Valley" was exhibited at the University of San Francisco School of Law. "Napa Valley: the People and the Landscapes" was exhibited at the Napa Valley Museum. Her landscapes were featured in the exhibit "Visionary Female Bay Area Artists" at USF School of Law. She was Artist-in-residence at Domaine Chandon winery for 8 years.

Among others, collectors of her work include: ERIC MORHAM, President, Constellation Wines Canada; CATHERINE and BILL HONIG, Honig Winery; CHRISTIAN MCDANIEL, Director of creative services, Constellation Wines; MATT ASHBY, Director of vineyard operations, Constellation Wines; WALT GMELCH, Dean of School of Education USF; CELLIN GLUCK, Director of the film "Black Rain"; REN and MARILYN HARRIS, owners of Paradigm winery. BRET LOPEZ, owner of Scarecrow Wine. Her images are in the centennial publication of the book “The Once and Future Forest: California Iconic Redwoods” by SAVE THE REDWOOD LEAGUE in San Francisco.

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