03-SEP-2006
Henri Cartier-Bresson said " You don't take a photograph, the photograph takes you." That's what happened here. I was photographing an elderly woman holding a fan when two young people walked into my frame. I saw the moment and made this image. When I first looked at this image on my computer, I saw for the first time the strange expression on the woman's face, and noticed that the younger people were interested only in their appearances. The gap between generations can be clearly seen here. The young people moved on, leaving this woman behind. They never even noticed her.
19-AUG-2006
A father comforts his son on the seat of a Shanghai bus. Their ears seem to be listening to each other. I framed this image tightly to emphasize those ears, and bring a sense of intimacy to this image. The noise and chaos of the bus fades. In this moment, only the sound of love can be heard.
21-FEB-2006
The parents of this little girl run a small shop in a local market. I was drawn by the light and the shadow and by the shy and curious nature of the child. She moved into the bright light, while her parents remained hidden in the deep shadows. I took a few pictures, and suddenly a father's hand reached out towards the child from the darkness. This is the moment that best tells the story.
25-DEC-2005
Two couples from different generations sit back to back, each in their own separate worlds. They would never understand each other. They embody different lives and loves. The older couple would find it difficult to acknowledge the presence of the young couple physically expressing their feelings on the wall behind them. Their own marriage might have even been arranged for them, a marriage that is more like a life long obligation -- a duty to be fulfilled. And that is exactly what they seem to be doing here.
12-AUG-2006
A son of a street vendor is resting by his family's stand. When I saw this boy, my heart sank. He should be studying at school or playing with friends. Instead, he seems exhausted and overwhelmed. The burdens of life have already fallen on his young shoulders. They are heavy, and come too early for him.
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.
06-NOV-2004
Because Suzhou is a historic city that is now trying to draw many tourists, it is seems almost unreal at times.
It is like the whole city wearing a big mask of deception-- the city pretends to be something that it was a long time ago, and everyone here seems to be playing a role on this city stage. This street cleaner does not take part however. He just sits back and takes it in.
23-MAR-2004
I made this picture in Nanjing, a Chinese city with a long and sad history. This woman, burdened with a child, was far away from me, and not only in terms of distance. She seems to be standing out there in a world of her own. A small and simple world, full of responsibilities and burdens. Her world offers her few choices. She looks at me, standing in my world, with curiosity and incomprehension. For her, life is just what it is. She does not think about a better life, because she does not know how.
12-JAN-2004
I abstracted the woman by using light and frame, drawing the eye into the steam. By doing so, I tried to make the picture convey a sense of place, and bring my viewers into the picture, helping them to both feel and smell this place.
28-DEC-2003
Large numbers of workers from China's poorer cities such as Heifei, migrate to Shanghai to find jobs in factories and other places with low wages. This migrant mother is one many such laborers, returning from Shanghai to Heifei on this train. She holds her own child in her arms as she looks up at another migrant mother. Although her life is very hard, I feel that she carries not only this child with her, but also a sense of hope. It is what keeps her, and all of these migrant laborers, going.