documentary The Vanishing Tattoos of the Li minority tribe

The Li, comprised of five tribes, are the indigenous inhabitants of

Hainan Island, China. It is believed that they migrated here more

than 2,000 years ago from the mainland.

 

The island of Hainan has approximately the same geographical area as

Taiwan and lies at the same latitude as Hawaii. The word "Hainan"

means "South of the Sea," but the Chinese likewise call their far

southern possession "The Tail of the Dragon"; a wild place at the end

of the Chinese world that at one time or another was considered more

remote and mysterious than Tibet or Mongolia.

 

The Li are one of fifty-five classified minority peoples of China,

and by the 15th century Han Chinese immigrants began driving the Li

into the southern mountains and forests forcing them to abandon their

traditional settlements on the coastal plains of Hainan Island. With

the establishment of the People?s Republic of China in 1949, the

communist government - adhering to an atheistic ideology -

implemented policies of pochu mixin (eradicating superstitions) and

yifengyisu (change prevailing customs and transform social

traditions) that quickly collapsed the animistic religion of the Li:

one that was based on ancestor worship and shamanism, as well as

other salient cultural institutions including music, weaving, and

tattooing.

 

Yet it was the rapid decline of the Li economy, one based on the

swidden agriculture of rice, that brought virtual extinction to the

sociocultural milieu. Because land, the element in which the divine,

mythic, and ritual components of life were deeply embedded, bound the

Li together into a social fabric that was intricately woven within an

integrated system of belief. This form of environmental enchainment

engendered a form of life experience that was accreted collectively,

since everything in the surrounding environment bore witness to Li

existence, including physical and mental attributes, as well more

metaphysical practices such as tattooing which were believed to carry

individuals into the afterlife.

Exquisite portrait, splendid tones and light!

Great work Alec.7/7.Regards.Janusz.

face and hands with black background...excellent..congrats

Excellent portrait, Alec. Details and skin tone are very good. I enjoyed and amenlightened by your write-up.Many thanks.

Great portrait, perfectly done...

Of the 3, I like this best. Great tones, light, details & composition.

Excellent work, Alec!

Great portriait with great stories.

Extraordinary expression in this portrait and excellent details. Compliments and regards, Maury

WOW!!! Excellent, 7/7.

 

Regards.

 

Alberto

Lovely composition, colors, and framing. Superb job once again, Alec.

Fantastic history with a great image. Congratulations. warm regards.