Catch: Asia Unique

by Hans Kemp (Editor), Red Banana Books

The Asia Unique series of books highlights the extraordinary diversity of Asia by focusing on one specific topic, photographed in its amazing diversity by some of the finest travel photographers currently working in Asia. Throughout the books, inspirational quotes and proverbs from Asia, related to the specific book topic, compliment the stunning images.

Catch shows the many ways people across the continent go about catching fish. There is a Chinese proverb that says, "don't stand by the water and long for fish; go home and weave a net." Fishing has been one of man's main pursuits throughout the ages. Asia's oceans, lakes and rivers provide for a substantial part of people's diets. Ingenious contraptions and clever devices have been constructed to gather a bountiful catch or simply to ensure there is food on the table. Nets come in all colors, shapes and sizes, rods short and long, bamboo traps, small enough to hold a handful of river crabs or over-sized to capture a catfish of monstrous proportions.

Catch highlights the extraordinary diversity of fishing methods across Asia; enriched by inspirational Asian quotes and proverbs related to the act of fishing. It is a wonderful photographic journey about those who make a living from the sea. Evocative images that illustrate the unique cultural traditions of Asia's fishermen, from the quietly contemplative rod and line to the beautifully crafted boats. A fascinating insight.

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

I am a freelance photographer based in Asia for over twenty years. My editorial work has been published in a wide variety of international newspapers and magazines such as GEO, Sud Deutsche Zeitung, Time, Panorama, Asahigraph, Reader's Digest.
I have published several books of my work of which perhaps the best known to date is Bikes of Burden, about the motorbike culture in Vietnam. Bikes of Burden even played a part in the normalization of trade relations between the US and Vietnam when the book was mentioned by a US Senator as an example of the industriousness of the Vietnamese people. To date Bikes of Burden has been published in an English, a German and a Japanese edition.
Other books are: Postcards from Vietnam, On the Dragon's Back -impressions of Hoi An-, Ardent Eye and Carrying Cambodia.
I am currently working on a new book called Ecstatic East, about spirits, trance and possession in Asia. Ecstatic East will be published in 2013
I also work(ed) on commercial assignments for clients like Jardines Schindler, Talisman Oil, Caltex Vietnam and Dutch dairy company Coberco as well as doing shoots for a variety of advertising clients.
In 2002 I founded Visionary World, a publishing company based in Hongkong, with the aim of producing high quality illustrated books about Asia. Visionary World co-published Vietnam Zippos, a book that made the Amazon Editors Choice top 100 for 2007. Under the Red Banana imprint the Asia Unique series of books was started in 2008 showcasing some of the finest travel photographers covering Asia. Our latest book is Sacred Skin, exploring the world of Sak Yant, the sacred tattoos of Thailand.
Visionary World will continue to publish exceptional photo books on a wide variety of Asian topics and I will continue to travel across Asia and beyond telling stories with my images, being a photographer -a writer with light.