The Autumnal Nymph

By Tewfic El-Sawy

November 17^th, 2016

The autumnal nymph

I met Zhang Mansi in Hanoi, and she reminded me of Luo Shen, a mythical figure of ancient China, who became popularly known because of a poem, Ode to the Nymph of the River Luo (Luo Shen Fu), composed by Cao Zhi of the Three Kingdom period.

It is said that Luo Shen was Mifei, the daughter of Emperor Fuxi of prehistorical legends, who became a nymph. A goddess of peerless beauty, she is, in the words of Cao Zhi's poem, as "elegant as a startled swan and supple as a swimming dragon." "Light of carriage and attractive in appearance", she looks like "the lotus freshly borne out by the clear waters". Her tresses are coiffured like clouds over a pair of long, graceful brows. "She has white teeth inside a pair of crimson lips, with eyes limpid as autumn waters, her face carries a faint smile vaguely suggested by her dimples."

I've done a few "fashion" shoots when leading photo workshops, and they're certainly not easy to do. In Hanoi, where I was for promoting my photo book Hầu Đồng: The Spirit Mediums of Viet Nam, I chanced upon Zhang Mansi and asked if she was willing to pose for me in the Old Quarter's streets. She did, giving me a well needed respite from the three photo talks I was to give in various venues.

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