Incense, fanned out in colour

In parts of Vietnam, incense sticks are dyed and then fanned out in bundles to dry in the sun. From a distance they look like flowers; closer, they become pure pattern.

These photographs show bundles of colourful incense spread out in circles, each stick a line of red, yellow or pink. One is seen from above, a woman arranging red bundles among them, her figure small against the colour. Another shows racks of incense bundles for sale, the same colours in tighter rows.

What makes the scene so photogenic is repetition. Hundreds of sticks form circles, circles form a field, and a single person gives it scale.

It is also a reminder that many beautiful images come from work. These are not decorations made for the camera, but an ordinary step in making something people use every day, at altars and on family occasions.

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Photos: vietfotos, xuanduongvan87, tho on Pixabay, used under the Pixabay Content License. These are not my photographs.