TED演讲 拍摄神秘的世界(1)

 Okay, so 90 percent of my photographic process is, in fact, not photographic.  好的，事实上，我摄影过程的百分之九十不仅仅只是照相。

It involves a campaign of letter writing,  它是一个包涵了写信，

research and phone calls to access my subjects,  研究以及电话联系得以接触拍摄对象的复杂过程。

which can range from Hamas leaders in Gaza to a hibernating¹ black bear in its cave in West Virginia. 我的拍摄对象的范围可以从加沙地区的哈马斯领导人，到西弗吉尼亚州一只蛰伏于洞穴中的黑熊。到西弗吉尼亚州一只蛰伏于洞穴中的黑熊。

And oddly, the most notable letter of rejection² I ever received came from Walt Disney World,  奇怪的是，我所收到的所有拒信中，最值得注意的一封，来自于迪斯尼世界，

a seemingly innocuous site.  一个看起来完全无害的地方。

And it read -- I'm just going to read a key sentence:  我只打算读读最关键的一句：

Especially during these violent times,  尤其实在现在这样一个恐怖时期，

I personally believe  我个人相信，

that the magical spell cast upon guests who visit our theme parks is particularly important to protect and helps to provide them with an important fantasy they can escape to.  在游览我们主题公园的客人们身上带有的神奇魔力，特别重要， 它为帮助人们实现逃离现实进入一个想象中的神奇世界提供了保障。

Photography threatens fantasy.  摄影会威胁想象力。

They didn't want to let my camera in because it confronts constructed realities, myths and beliefs, 他们不想让我的照相机进入迪斯尼，因为照相机能挑战了他们所建立的现实、神秘以及信仰，

and provides what appears to be evidence of a truth.  并提供了真正事实的证据。

But there are multiple truths attached to every image,  但每幅照片，都被赋予了不止一个真相，

depending on the creator's intention, the viewer and the context in which it is presented.  这取决于拍摄者的目的，以及观看者以及照片本身所处的环境。

Over a five year period following September 11th,  在911之后的五年多，

when the American media and government were seeking hidden and unknown sites beyond its borders, 当美国媒体和政府在寻找美国境外隐藏的和不为人所知的地点,

most notably³ weapons of mass destruction,  和著名的大规模杀伤武器，

I chose to look inward at that which was integral to America's foundation,  我选择去探究一些更深层次的东西—它们对美国的国家基础、

mythology⁴ and daily functioning.  神话和国家机能来说，是不可或缺的。

I wanted to confront the boundaries of the citizen,  我自愿并真诚地,

self-imposed and real,  希望去突破公民的边界，

and confront the divide between privileged and public access to knowledge.  突破特权和公共介入信息之间的鸿沟，突破特权和公共介入信息之间的鸿沟，

It was a critical moment in American history and global history where one felt they didn't have access to accurate information.  这在美国历史乃至世界历史上，都是重要的时刻—人们发现他们无法触及精确的信息。

And I wanted to see the center with my own eyes,  我希望我能亲眼看见这一切的核心，

but what I came away with is a photograph.  但随我上路的，只是一部相机。

And it's just another place from which to observe,  那只是另一个让我观察的地方，

and the understanding that there are no absolute, all-knowing insiders.  并让我了解到，世上没有绝对的、无所不知的知情人。

And the outsider can never really reach the core.  而局外人则永远也无法真正触及事情的核心。

I'm going to run through some of the photographs in this series.  我将展示这一系列中的一些相片。

It's titled, An American Index of the Hidden and Unfamiliar,  这个系列取名为：探寻隐藏的美国。

and it's comprised of nearly 70 images.  它由将近70幅照片组成。

In this context I'll just show you a few.  在今天的演讲里，我只能展示其中的一些。

This is a nuclear waste storage and encapsulation facility at Hanford site in Washington State,  这是一个存储、封装核废料的基地位于华盛顿州的汉福德，

where there are over 1,900 stainless⁶ steel capsules containing nuclear waste submerged in water. 这里有超过1900个浸入于水中的不锈钢容器，它们盛有核废料。

A human standing⁵ in front of an unprotected capsule would die instantly.  如果一个人站在毫无任何保护措施的容器前，他将立刻死亡。

And I found one section amongst all of these that actually resembled the outline of the United States of America, 我发现其中的一部分正好勾勒出了美国领土的轮廓。正好勾勒出了美国领土的轮廓。

which you can see here.  你可以在这里看到。

And a big part of the work that is sort of absent in this context is text.  在这样的情况下，作品里缺失的，是文字。

So I create these two poles.  因此，我创建了两个部分：

Every image is accompanied with a very detailed⁷ factual text.  每幅图片都配有一段非常详尽的、确凿的文字说明。

And what I'm most interested in is the invisible space between a text and its accompanying image,  而我最感兴趣的是，存在于文字和对应图片之间的隐形的距离，

and how the image is transformed by the text and the text by the image.  以及照片如何被转述为文字，文字又如何由照片阐释。

So, at best, the image is meant to float away into abstraction and multiple truths and fantasy.  所以，最理想的情况，照片也注定要转变为抽象的概念、真相和想象。

And then the text functions as this cruel anchor that kind of nails it to the ground.  而文字则如同锐利的锚将这些漂浮的东西牢牢地按在地上。

But in this context I'm just going to read an abridged⁸ version of those texts.  今天时间有限，我只能读缩略的版本。

This is a cryopreservation unit,  这是一个冷冻保存单元

and it holds the bodies of the wife and mother of cryonics pioneer Robert Ettinger,  里面保存了人体冷冻法先驱罗伯特爱丁格的妻子和母亲的尸体。

who hoped to be awoken one day to extended life in good health, with advancements⁹ in science and technology,  罗伯特希望有一天能唤起并延续她们的生命，用先进的科学技术使她们重新获得健康。

all for the cost of 35 thousand dollars, for forever.  这项技术一次性收费35000美元。

1 hibernating   

（某些动物）冬眠，蛰伏( hibernate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The hibernating animals reduce movement to far below the ordinary level. 冬眠的动物把活动量大大减少到低于一般的水平。
• People find hibernating animals asleep. 人们发现冬眠动物处于休眠状态。

2 rejection   

n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃

参考例句：

• He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
• The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。

3 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

4 mythology   

n.神话，神话学，神话集

参考例句：

• In Greek mythology,Zeus was the ruler of Gods and men.在希腊神话中，宙斯是众神和人类的统治者。
• He is the hero of Greek mythology.他是希腊民间传说中的英雄。

5 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

6 stainless   

adj.无瑕疵的，不锈的

参考例句：

• I have a set of stainless knives and forks.我有一套不锈钢刀叉。
• Before the recent political scandal,her reputation had been stainless.在最近的政治丑闻之前，她的名声是无懈可击的。

7 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

8 abridged   

削减的，删节的

参考例句：

• The rights of citizens must not be abridged without proper cause. 没有正当理由，不能擅自剥夺公民的权利。
• The play was abridged for TV. 剧本经过节略，以拍摄电视片。

9 advancements   

n.（级别的）晋升( advancement的名词复数 )；前进；进展；促进

参考例句：

• Today, the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements. 当今， 随着科技进步，生活节奏不断增快。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Great advancements in drought prediction have been made in recent years. 近年来，人们对干旱灾害的预报研究取得了长足的进步。 来自互联网