Combining modern inkjet technology and a kind of Tibetan paper, Jin Ping recreates two Tibetan thangka. [Photos Provided to China Daily]

The 1,300-year-old Tibetan paper makes an image look like it is mysteriously illuminated and is, therefore, the ideal medium for photographer Jin Ping. Wen Chihua reports.

Photographer Jin Ping is not obsessed with technology - but he has long been charmed by the exploration of new methods of image presentation.

The Chengdu, Sichuan province-based photographer, who is in his 50s, has succeeded in developing a distinctive method of combining modern inkjet technology and a kind of Tibetan paper that has a 1,300-year history.

The hybrid process makes the image appear like "a musical charm and a mix of originality and modernity", Jin says.

One of the most intriguing pieces Jin has created with this new method is a recreation of a plate of 24 commemorative stamps issued in 1959 to mark the 10th anniversary of the founding of New China.

The original monochrome woodcut stamp features Chairman Mao Zedong in a dark green uniform, standing on the Tian'anmen Square rostrum as he proclaims the founding of New China.

In Jin's representation, the powerful Mao looks warm and graceful. The fiber of the Tibetan paper creates a surface texture with complex characteristics that subdues the sharpness of Mao. The paper's rough grain makes the simple colors look rich but not exaggerated.

This work deeply impressed the British stamp collecting community, and they invited Jin to create two pieces. One is a reproduction of a plate of 12 Penny Black stamps, the world's first adhesive postage stamp used in a public system. The other is a recreation of the Penny Black's sister stamp, a plate of the 18 Penny Red stamps.

Printed on Tibetan paper, the work lends an Eastern flavor to Queen Victoria's profile image.

Jin's exploration of Tibetan paper started in 2006 when he went to Dege Sutra Printing House in Garze Tibetan autonomous prefecture, Sichuan province.

At the printing house, one of the things that Jin discovered was that the techniques of writing, carving and block printing have remained largely the same as they were in the 13th century. And the tradition of Tibetan papermaking has been passed down for centuries.

"It is a priceless living example of folk craftsmanship," Jin says.

Jin, who had worked in the printing industry for more than 10 years, says, "Tibetan paper makes an image look like it is mysteriously illuminated. I realized this age-old medium would be able to create an unexpected visual effect for digital images."

Tibetan paper is noted for being clean, mothproof and moisture-proof, and possessing a long shelf life. Tibetan Buddhists use it to print classic sutras, which can stay in perfect condition for hundreds of years.

The paper is made of the root hair of the Stellera chamaejasme plant, a medicinal herb referred to as Agyiaorugyiao. The plant, which grows about 3,000 to 4,000 meters above sea level on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, is toxic, germicidal and antiviral.

"Because the paper is fully handmade, every sheet is unique, making it an ideal medium for contemporary art creations," Jin says.