A snowstorm came unexpectedly, and a group of Mongolian horses did not panic or fear, relying on collective wisdom to resist the cold and survive the winter safely.
A group of Mongolian horses found a vantage point to shelter from the wind and snow, and the leading male horse stood in front of the herd in the wind to prevent the tailwind from dispersing.
The wind and snow were blowing, and a male horse in the depths of the wilderness was snorting and watching my car warily.
The temperature was already below minus 45 degrees Celsius, and a Mongolian horse was stretching its loins.
A yellow chestnut horse faces the wind and snow.
I am Mongolian and I love Mongolian horses. Eji (Mongolian, meaning mother) blessed me: "The wind and horses fly, the wind and the water." Abba encouraged me: "Get on the horse and run into the distance, and create a career." "I've been involved in photography for more than 30 years, photographing many important thematic works, and I've never left my beloved steppes, herders and Mongolian horses. I have always stood firm in this land with a pure heart, paying attention to and recording my people, my grasslands, my Mongolian horses...
With the rapid development of social economy, the use value of Mongolian horses has been greatly reduced, raising cattle and sheep is more profitable than raising horses, so the number of herders and Mongolian horses raising Mongolian horses is getting smaller and smaller. Nowadays, the herders who raise Mongolian horses in large numbers on the steppe are no longer for profit, but for the Mongolian horses that have formed a life-and-death relationship with the Mongols, which can continue to flourish and survive on the grasslands. These herders are not only Mongols, but also Han, Evenk, Daur and so on who are rooted in the grasslands and love the grasslands. Deep in the steppe, the Mongolian horse has become another symbol of national unity.
Since the winter of 2015, I have been following the horses in the snow in the snow that cannot see the horses' heads and tails deep in the Hulunbuir steppe, along the border between China and Mongolia and China and Russia, in order to leave the Mongolian horses strong and brave. The Mongolian horses I photographed were Mongolian horses running freely in the snowy wilderness and in the cold wind, and Mongolian horses that were still full of vitality and spirit in the harsh environment of dripping water and ice.
In the wilderness I have been walking and photographing for a long time, many times, the only creature I can see is the Mongolian horse. Their image of not being afraid of the wind and snow and standing up to the sky; the mane that has not been trimmed, the heroism that has not been shackled; the cold of more than 40 degrees below zero is covered with white frost, and they are still scraping the grass under the snow; the vitality of running through the snow all night to find the vitality after the Ruyi grassland... They were all recorded by me in the camera.
The steppe is the cradle of the Mongolian horse. The Mongolian horse is the soul of the steppe. In my mind, the Mongolian horse is not only an animal, but also a silent monument of inexhaustible heavenly books and selfless dedication to mankind. I not only want to find artistic inspiration from mongolian horses, but also want the majesty of Mongolian horses to live forever in the image.
(Author: Ah Yin, Department of Photographers, Winner of China Photography Award)