As a Chinese poem goes, So long as we remain friends in the heart, we willfeel like neighbors though East and West apart. Dr. Sidney McPhee and I havebeen friends for more than a decade. More than a decade ago, introduced by Dr.
Zheng Guanping, Dr. McPhee made his first visit to Hunan Normal University, andI presided over his lecture on the comparative study of Chinese and Americaneducation. In the lecture, he shared his understanding, experience and love ofChina. As expected, the lecture was enthusiastically received by the students. Atthat time, he gave me the impression of being sincere, cheerful, erudite and jovialwith amazing insights and great familiarity with the Chinese culture.That pleasantmeeting not only contributed to the subsequent friendly cooperation betweenHunan Normal University and Middle Tennessee State University, but also theprecious friendship between us. So when he requested a foreword from me for thisbook, I accepted with great honor and pleasure.
海內(nèi)存知己，天涯若比鄰。我與西德尼·麥克菲博士是相交多
年的朋友了。十多年前，經(jīng)校友鄭冠平博士引薦，麥克菲博士首次到訪湖南師范大學(xué)，并由我主持他的講座。我記得，他當(dāng)時(shí)演講的主題是關(guān)于中美高等教育比較的，也談到了他對(duì)中國(guó)的認(rèn)知、體驗(yàn)和熱愛，演講深受學(xué)生們喜愛。他真誠(chéng)開朗、學(xué)識(shí)淵博、談笑風(fēng)生，尤其令我驚嘆的是，他對(duì)中國(guó)文化十分熟悉，且富有遠(yuǎn)見卓識(shí)。那次愉快的會(huì)見不僅促成了我校與中田納西州立大學(xué)的友好合作，也開始了我與麥克菲博士之間的真摯友誼。所以，當(dāng)他邀我為他的新書作序時(shí)，我欣然答應(yīng)了。
As one of the 50 most influential African-Americans, Dr. McPhee became the10th President of Middle Tennessee State University in 2001. President McPheehas had the honor and privilege to have met former President Barack Obama ina one on one setting which has been one of the highlight of his life. Early in hiscareer as President, he was nominate by former President George W. Bush andconfirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as a member of the Council for the NationalEendowment of Humanities. With his outstanding horizon and perspective, hesuccessfully forged MTSU, a regional university, into a comprehensive andinfluential university over 20 years, during which the university fostered severalNobel Prize winners. With each of my many official visits to the MTSU, I was ableto see amazing changes there. The outstanding achievements he and the MTSUmade together over the years are definitely stimulating.
麥克菲博士于 2001 年就任中田納西州立大學(xué)第 10 任校長(zhǎng)，是田納西州最有影響力的 50 位非洲裔美國(guó)人之一。麥克菲博士曾與美國(guó)前總統(tǒng)奧巴馬先生有過一對(duì)一的會(huì)面，對(duì)此他一直引以為傲。在擔(dān)任校長(zhǎng)早期，由美國(guó)前總統(tǒng)喬治·W. 布什提名，參議院任命麥克菲博士為美國(guó)國(guó)家人文基金會(huì)成員之一。憑借他的高瞻遠(yuǎn)矚，他花了近 20 年之功，把一所地區(qū)性的高校打造成了美國(guó)頗有影響力的綜合性大學(xué)，還培養(yǎng)了多位諾貝爾獎(jiǎng)獲得者。我多次應(yīng)邀訪問中田納西州立大學(xué)，每次都發(fā)現(xiàn)它又有了驚人的變化。我為麥克菲博士和中田納西州立大學(xué)有今天的成就感到振奮。
He is also a passionate photographer who loves to share his photos withfriends. Since his first trip to China in 1999, he has travelled to more than 150places in China, ranging from metropolitan cities to remote villages. At hisphoto exhibitions, people all over the world could see the beautiful landscapes,architectures combined with tradition and modernity, the diversity of Chinesegourmet food as well as the friendly and warm-hearted Chinese people. A bookwith his 200 photographs titled China: Through the Eyes of an American University
President,featuring the splendor of a rising and confident China going to the world,was published in July 2012 by Hunan Fine Arts Publishing House, which waswarmly received internationally.
麥克菲博士熱愛攝影，喜歡與朋友們分享他的攝影作品。1999 年，
他第一次來到中國(guó)，迄今已到訪中國(guó) 150 多個(gè)地方。他經(jīng)常舉辦攝影展，將中國(guó)如詩(shī)如畫的風(fēng)景、傳統(tǒng)與現(xiàn)代交相輝映的建筑、美味豐富的中式烹飪以及熱情、善良、友好的人民介紹到世界各地。2012 年，他精選200 張攝影作品，在湖南美術(shù)出版社出版了《一位美國(guó)校長(zhǎng)眼中的中國(guó)》一書，精彩呈現(xiàn)了一個(gè)正在崛起的、自信地融入世界的中國(guó)的風(fēng)采，受到了國(guó)際社會(huì)的廣泛好評(píng)。
Dr. McPhee told me that he liked the smiles, kindness and confidence of theChinese people. To provide a representation of China with new vigor and depth,his camera lens focused on different ethnic minorities in different regions of thecountry, weaving a tapestry of China: the Tibetan worshipers prostrating, theheart-warming welcome wine tasting ceremony of the Miao people in the western
Hunan province, the 100-person-feast of Dong people in Guangxi AutonomousRegion along with many other customs and practices of other Chinese ethnicminorities. Over the trips, he was more than an observer or recorder, but instead,he actively experienced different cultural practices: at Mount Huang, he shoulderedthe loaded carrying pole for the porter; he tried acupuncture and cupping when hesuffered from the discomfort in the shoulder; he volunteered to play a role on thestage when watching a performance; he tasted the tea and wine prepared by thepeople in different regions. We can see, with each photo, there is a story aboutChina, speaking to the readers his understanding of the Chinese ethnic minoritiesand his love of the Chinese ethnic cultures, and presenting a contemporary Chinacreating great miracles. I admire his devotion to the undertaking from the bottomof my heart.
麥克菲博士說，他非常喜歡中國(guó)人民的微笑、善良和自信。為了更加深入、生動(dòng)地表現(xiàn)中國(guó)，這次他將鏡頭對(duì)準(zhǔn)了中國(guó)不同地區(qū)的不同少數(shù)民族，他用鏡頭拍下了一個(gè)又一個(gè)美麗的中國(guó)形象：拉薩藏民朝圣者虔誠(chéng)的祈禱，湘西苗族群眾熱情的迎客酒，廣西侗族的百人大餐，以及其他少數(shù)民族的風(fēng)土人情。他不僅作為一個(gè)觀察者去記錄，還充滿好奇地盡情去體驗(yàn)。上黃山，他替搬運(yùn)工挑擔(dān)子；肩有不適，他去做艾灸拔火罐；看演出，他上臺(tái)去扮演角色；他品過山區(qū)的茶，喝過村民的酒。
可以說，他的每張照片背后都有一個(gè)中國(guó)故事，講述了他對(duì)中國(guó)少數(shù)民族的理解，對(duì)中國(guó)民族文化的熱愛，向世人呈現(xiàn)了一個(gè)創(chuàng)造偉大奇跡的當(dāng)代中國(guó)。我為麥克菲博士的傾情付出感到由衷的欽佩。
As Dr. McPhee writes in this book, the power of a picture can be worththousands of words. I believe, what he wants to express here, is that only whena work of art conveys the most basic feelings and emotions of humankind canit touch the hearts of its audience and readers. So I believe, Dr. McPheesphotographic work not only presents the peoples and cultures of ethnic minoritiesin China, but also carries a message with a deeper meaning: despite the unique
and special qualities of each individual, we all share as fellow inhabitants of thesame planet the same longings for kindness, peace and happiness.
By: Dr. Jiang Hongxin, professor, PhD Supervisor and President of HunanNormal University
麥克菲博士在書中引述道，圖像的表現(xiàn)力勝于文字。我想他的意思
是說，一件藝術(shù)作品只有表現(xiàn)了人類最基本的感情，才能夠成功地感動(dòng)觀眾和讀者。我認(rèn)為，麥克菲博士的攝影作品不僅展示了中國(guó)各地的民族文化和風(fēng)土人情，同時(shí)還表達(dá)了更加深刻的內(nèi)涵：雖然每個(gè)人是如此地與眾不同、獨(dú)具特色，但棲居在同一星球上的我們卻有著共同的希冀：仁愛、和平與幸福。
謹(jǐn)以為序。
（作者系湖南師范大學(xué)校長(zhǎng)、教授、博士生導(dǎo)師）
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