11-MAY-2005
The first thing I noticed here was the identical body language being unconsciously expressed by two of the three women in this photograph. My eye then found this shy little boy looking at me from behind his mother's outstretched leg. Apparently my camera is far more interesting to this child than his mom's conversation. He looks at us with a curious eye, and with that, he provides the basis for an expressive photograph.
11-MAY-2005
It is hard to live all alone. I wanted to reach out and comfort her. And so I did, but in my own way. I talked to her, and asked if I could take some pictures for her, and promised to bring her the prints next time. She agreed.
I allowed her to become comfortable with my camera. She forgot my presence and became lost in her own memories. She is so vulnerable and so alone. She lives in the past, and does not want to leave it.
11-MAY-2005
I organized this picture by layers, gradually allowing her little world to meet the outside world. We first see an elderly woman sitting by her door, then the layer of parked bikes, and finally the tall apartments across the river. The city is changing every day. but none of that matters to her. She probably has lived here for her whole life, and will probably die here as well. The bikes suggest a way out, but she would never ride away on them. This is where she belongs.
11-MAY-2005
Some people might overlook the old woman in this picture because she appears to be so dark, small, quiet, and unimportant. She blends in with the laundry, which appears overwhelming. At first glance, she seems to almost become a towel, hanging on the line to dry. But if we take a closer and longer look, we will find her there, and realize that she was there long before that laundry went up, and will still be there long after it comes down.
07-NOV-2004
This man has turned his home into a small tea house. But nobody comes to drink his tea. He is about to retreat to a darker part of his house. I made this image just before he left me -- it is almost as if I am trying to hold him back from the darkness that calls him. It is such a painful picture for me to look at. I feel the loneliness that seems to be slowly draining the life from this man.
02-MAY-2004
I made this picture for Shuangshuang. She always has a beautiful smile on her face, as if nothing can upset her. She is excited about life. She wants to discover as much as she can about both past and present. The boy who standing quietly behind her is her younger brother. Her family's loving support makes a huge contribution to Shuangshuang's life.
20-MAR-2005
I compare a moving subject to a still subject here to indicate two different states of mind -- troubled and peaceful. Throughout history, people have never stop desiring things. They are action-oriented, craving results, yet the Buddha sits here silently, desiring nothing. We seek answers from Buddha, here in one of China's greatest temples, for all of our questions. Yet it is really peace of mind that we should be seeking, because only then will we be able to find happiness by discovering the strengths that hide within ourselves.
07-NOV-2004
The white dog is apparently small and weak, and that black dog wants a fight, she has no way to win here. She seems very nervous and ready to leave the fight before it ever starts.