Mr Ray Chen —artist, Jamaican and great human being
Photographers have an essential role in society.
They capture, preserve and share images. Before the stupendous advancement in digitial photography, the art of the still photograph became invaluable as a way of accurately recording the world.
The availability of photos transformed how people saw humanity, because it shared the images, widely obviating the need to actually view a place or meet a person or witness an event. Before photographs, only the rich and powerful were recorded by having their portraits painted.
The camera meant that all and every body could be recorded for history and gave us a fuller perspective on the march of history. Today’s world is dominated by the moving images of video, but the still photograph retains a special and unique place.
The content of moving images does not allow the extended viewing of an image, which often reveals much more after intensive or repeated contemplation.
The recently deceased Mr Ray Chen performed this service for Jamaica. Mr Chen was born in Jamaica but migrated to Canada after graduating from Wolmer’s Boys’ School.
Once he discovered his love and talent for photography he pursued it through study in New York.
Although he spent almost 50 years living in Montreal, his heart was always in Jamaica. He became one of Canada’s top photographers, and whenever his busy schedule permitted he returned to Jamaica.
On his frequent visits to his homeland he took, over time, millions of photos, the best of which he shared in his books.
He has published three books of pictures, which became best-sellers, finding a place in many Jamaican homes here and abroad. His first book, Jamaica: The land and the people, which appeared in 1984, was followed by Jamaica: The beauty and the soul of the land we love in 1993.
His most recent book is Jamaica: My 50 Years in Photography, which was launched in 2015.
Mr Ray Chen was more than an artist, he was a “documentalist” producing a historical volume commemorating the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the Chinese in Jamaica.
That outstanding work was entitled The Shopkeepers and was published in 2005. Many artists tend to be eccentric, and in some cases difficult to deal with.
Mr Chen, was the total opposite, despite his success. People who know him well will confirm that he was a modest, unassuming man who got along with everyone who met him.
His affability, we are sure, contributed to the ease with which he got people to allow him to take photographs of them. He was always willing to help other people and share his expertise as he intrepidly trekked the byways of rural Jamaica.
While he is no longer with us in the flesh, he will forever remain in our hearts and minds, not only because of the indelible mark he made on Jamaica through his craft, but also because he was such a wonderful human being. May his soul rest in peace.