Marc Progin’s spectacular and sensational Mongolian landscape Frozen in Time
Marc Progin’s odyssey across a Sanctuary Frozen in Time
Twilight fires of the Cretaceous, 2022, Hermen Tsav, Omnogovi, Mongolia, The end of the world, or Cretaceous formation where the first dinosaur skeleton was unearthed in 1923, Marc Progin
Marc Progin’s first-hand experience of Mongolia
Frostbite is a malady most Hongkongers only read about; Marc Progin has first-hand experience.
At an age when successful expatriates retire to tropical paradises, he embarked on a series of odysseys across the Mongolian landscape, akin to Ansel Adams’ documentation of Yosemite or the missionary Dr David Livingstone’s mapping of Africa’s heartland.
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These comparisons are not hyperbolies. Progin’s photographs are like those of the American landscape photographer and environmental conservationist Ansel Adams (1902-1984) in esthetics and purpose.
Spring migration, 2012, Sulin Adag desert, Zavkhan, Mongolia This is where from nothing but the earth, and out of which all emerges and ultimately all returns, the nomads and the wildlife share the space to live in harmony, Marc Progin
Progin and Adams are able to imagine and then capture landscape images that are more like paintings than photographs. And both artists are compelled to use their art for environmental advocacy.
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For thirty years, Dr Livingstone (1813-1873) explored and learned how to live outside of the comforts of Western society, documenting places and people previously known only to the local inhabitants.
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In a similar vein, over the last nineteen years, Progin estimates he has spent three years walking, running, cycling, and riding camels and horses across an estimated 30,000 km on every terrain the country offers.
Hunter gatherer frozen in time, Mongolia, 2005, Marc Progin
Avoiding cities and towns, he has travelled alone across the thirty-three deserts that form the Mongolian Gobi, negotiating through the Altai and Kanghai mountains, crossing the vast barren steppe, roaming Siberian forests, and meeting all of Mongolia’s ethnic groups.
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From encounters with these nomads, Progin learned to survive all four seasons in the harsh Mongolian terrain without the need for possessions, modern equipment, or complicated logistics.
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That said, each of his trips is part of a project with a specific purpose, and he meticulously researches where he might discover ancient treasures.
Experience life like Palaeolithic nomads
Some of his journeys are in the winter so as to experience what it must have been like for nomads living there during the Palaeolithic age.
Pilgrimage in sacred land, Mongolia, 2023, Marc Progin
It was during one of these trips that Progin experienced frostbite.
When nothing but earth, heaven and nature are the companions of your days and nights, then life is a wonderful journey into the immensity of true freedom.
Marc Progin
But his sacrifices have paid dividends; he has located and photographed ancient petroglyphs, deer stone megaliths from 1500 BCE, Iron Age anthropomorphic stone statues, and Paleo rock art, as well as 3,500-year-old gravestones, Bronze Age sacrificial sites, and ancient Ovoos.
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Progin’s life was like that of most expatriates until 1988, when his doctor advised him to take up a sport.
Born from the cradle of civilization, 2023, Mongolia, Marc Progin
This simple piece of advice precipitated two significant changes in his life. First, he learned he was a talented endurance athlete.
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He completed his first marathon that year; in 1999, he competed in the inaugural Mongolia Sunrise to Sunset 100-km ultramarathon. He has since completed that race fourteen times.
Mongolia Sunrise to Sunset 100-km ultramarathon
Before that first Mongolian ultramarathon, he was flown by helicopter to the race’s starting point.
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Then, the second life-changing event occurred; he fell in love with the Mongolian landscape.
Twilight of times, Mongolia, 2016, Marc Progin
He says, “When nothing but earth, heaven and nature are the companions of your days and nights, then life is a wonderful journey into the immensity of true freedom.”
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Since 2005, Progin has repeatedly returned, taking over 40,000 images. They document ancient artefacts, nomads, wildlife, migrating birds and caravans of hunters.
However, the star subject in Progin’s photographs is always the Mongolian landscape.
Faith, will power and courage, Mongolia, 2023, Marc Progin
Seen through crystal-clear air, the vast landscapes continually frame, backdrops, and scene-steal every image.
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Progin is now seventy-nine; last year, he was in Mongolia again, adding to his portfolio.
Like Ansel Adams, his images are art; like Dr Livingston, he is willing to shed Western comforts to capture the beauty of the Mongolian landscape and preserve its ancient treasures.
Guardians of the empire of the blue Turk, Mongolia, 2023, Marc Progin
His life and work are inspiring, a reminder of the power of art and exploration in deepening our understanding of the world and preserving its cultural and natural heritage.
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Marc Progin’s images are on display at La Galerie Paris 1839’s Sanctuary Frozen in Time exhibition.
Text Martin Wray / Photos Marc Progin
