There is an old saying in Taiwan that "a dog brings wealth and a cat brings poverty," but a local photographer sees those attitudes changing, especially among the younger generation.
"More and more young people like cats now, and they understand them," said Wu Yi-ping (
For Wu, who majored in English at National Chengchi University, taking pictures of cats in Taiwan and overseas has become more than a hobby. The 33-year-old lensman has visited 10 countries in search of cats to photograph. His latest publication from Eurasian Press details a recent trip to Zamami Island near Okinawa, where Wu went to shoot more photos of, yes, cats.
"Cats are clean and quiet, and they don't shit or pee everywhere," said Wu, when asked to explain his predilection for felines. "Dogs, on the other hand, are noisy, and I don't have time to walk a dog outside every day. Yes, rabbits are cute, but I really don't like the smell they leave in their cages. Birds, in my opinion, should be allowed to fly high in the sky, naturally, and not be kept in cages."
Wu's father shares his passion and takes care of his son's two cats, a male called Big Brother and a female called Kitty. But "my mother doesn't like cats so much, because she has to clean the house," Wu said.
Wu first started photographing cats in Taiwan when he was in his early 20s, beginning with Big Brother and Kitty. He then ventured outside to shoot street cats around Taipei.
A few years ago, Wu saw a Japanese television show that featured a segment about the cat population on Zamami Island, near Okinawa. Intrigued, he flew to Naha and hopped on a ferry to the small offshore island. He visited the island two more times, for a total of about 20 days, and the results can be seen in the color photos that grace his recently published book Cats of Zamami Island (座閒味 -- 沖繩貓生活物語). The photographs are not Hello Kitty "cute." They have a more dramatic, in-your-face, documentary style.
Wu says he lives a simple life to save money for his overseas excursions.
He became serious about photography during college. Although he speaks English fluently, he says he didn't really like going to class.
"I didn't like sitting in a classroom when I was attending university," he said. "So I just took photographs every day. Actually, when I was still in high school, I transformed my bedroom at home into a photographic darkroom and slept alongside the enlarger and the chemicals."
In college, Wu took classes in photojournalism and afterwards learned more about darkroom techniques at a private photo academy in Taipei. He later worked as a photographer for two local newspapers and a travel maga-zine, and was hired as a stringer for Reuters two years ago. Wu currently works full time as a photographer for 30 Magazine, but hopes the future will present more opportunities to travel abroad and shoot more cats.
With interest in owning pets at an all-time high in Taiwan, Wu hopes that his latest book will help raise interest in cats, not as cute icons, but as animals with intriguing personalities that make good household pets. He adopted his two cats, and he hopes others will do the same.
"I really hope that Taiwanese will, if possible, refrain from buying cats from pet shops and take in cats from the streets or shelters, because there are many cats in need of adoption," he said.
Wu's books are available at bookstores nationwide and on the Internet. His postcards can be found at all Eslite bookstores.
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