Elaine Ling (1946-2016) traveled to almost every continent in an accomplished career as a stellar imagemaker and artist. A family doctor, she loved medicine and photography and was most at home backpacking with her view camera and sleeping under the stars. Ling’s photographs are widely published inclusive of four monographs and in permanent private and museum collections worldwide.
Ling was drawn to desert landscapes, and this is how she ventured to Mongolia with its vast Gobi desert. On her five trips, she found and photographed the wonders of the ancient world; Deer Stones, Turkit Stones and shamanistic stone markers called ovoos, while noting the Mongolian culture in transition. Her vocabulary was mainly Polaroid type 55 black and white film and hand printed sliver gelatin prints.
Deer Stones are large monolithic stele often with depictions of deer, other animals, human figures, and abstract symbols. They are thought have had of significant cultural and ritual significance in the Bronze age, the exact purpose is not fully understood, but found on archeological sites related to shamanistic beliefs and practices.
Ling’s photographs leave a valuable accounting of these historical and cultural markers, as the stones face various conservation challenges due to weather, erosion, and human activities. As well, she leaves an important legacy in detailing the Mongolian nomadic way of life which today faces challenges and its connection to its ancient past.
WEBSITE; https://elaineling.ca/index.html
BOOKS: https://ultraanaloguerecordings.com/new/shop-by-category/elaine-ling-photography-books/
Talking Stones and Mongolia, Land of the Deer Stone
