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© Xiao

Not much information on the photographer, Xiao, but he tells me that he was originally from Tian Jin, China. Spent a year in Japan halfway through his studies to “experience life” and he’s in the States now completing a economics degree. Sometimes, the less you say, the more evocative the pictures turn out. While I generally only post completed or semi-completed series of works, some of his images really spoke to me. Click here to visit his blog.

Talk about East meeting West. Sanatorium, a gallery in Turkey, is showing an exhibition on Chinese contemporary photographers, Passing China, from March 25 to April 24. This is in collaboration with Eli Klein Gallery from New York. A look at the list of artists reveal some well-travelled photographers from China – Chen Qiang, Lian Dongya, Li Wei, Liu Bolin, Maleonn, Miao Xiaochun, Pan Yue, Wang Yiqiong, Zuoxiao Zuzhou.

I think that the cross-border showing of photography, especially outside the main art centers can be quite a good primer for a region’s works. I have lost count of the number of people asking me for advice on photography coming from Asia (despite this blog’s moniker, I’m not really an expert). However, the interesting bit comes in when, after viewing the more well-known works, one finds the few gems in the rough. It can be an exhilarating experience.

Visit the gallery’s official website to read more. C-Arts Magazine has a review of the exhibition held in New York here.

TOP TO BOTTOM, from (“??/Looking Afar“)
© Lei Jianyou

Lei is a young photographer from Zhejiang, China. A self-taught photographer with a short history behind him, his works carry a certain heaviness. He infuses elements of melancholy romanticism in his pictures of abandoned objects, often resulting in works that are both beautiful and painful to look at.

This series was produced during a winter period when he traveled to the north of China. The coldness of the weather, coupled with longing for a lost love and the warmth of friends resulted in this set of images. He projected his feelings onto a dejected landscape, as a form of mediation between a conflicted inner landscape and the serene world outside.

For more of his works, visit his portfolio here (in Chinese only, links are on the right of the images).

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© Stephen Kelly, 2009

Stephen JB Kelly documented the lives of ethnic Muslim minorities living in Lanzhou, a city in China’s north west. The government’s treatment of the Uighurs have dominated the news in recent months. Stephen’s series comes at a right time, shedding light onto a world previously ignored by the outside world.

From his statement:

Qi Lihe is home to thousands of Muslim migrant families who have left their homeland within the Linxia Hui autonomous prefecture and arrived into the city searching for job opportunities and ultimately, a better life. For hundreds of years the Hui and Dongxiang Muslim minorities have farmed the arid land surrounding their ancestral villages. In recent years though, desertification has forced this once workable landscape to begin a dramatic change, impelling many modern day farmers and their families to seek a better existence in Lanzhou.

The work is a documentation of culture, modernization, oppression and environmental destruction all rolled into one. This is a story that has been repeated too many times in our short history. Once again, we’re reminded of the things we leave behind in the name of progress.

Visit his online portfolio to see the rest of the series.

© Chen Chunlin

Eight Chinese photographers are having an exhibition from Nov 19 to Dec 31 at the interesting-looking Redstar 35 building in Chengdu. The participating photographers are: Adou, Chen Chunlin, Feng Li, Li Jun, Luo Dan, Liu Ke, Muge and Yang Yi. The group’s images focus on a slice of life in modern day China, often with a penchant for the more mysterious aspects.

Click here to see more images.

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© Madi Ju

Madi Ju is a freelance photographer based in Beijing. Her images are steeped in the style of the snapshot aesthetic; loosely framed, usually shot on a compact camera and often an extension of the photographer’s life. She was once the other half of online photo-phenomenon My Little Dead Dick (some images NSFW), a love story that took the world by storm. Since they parted, she has been working in the fashion/editorial scene in China.

I wouldn’t call myself a fan (I had some troubles picking out the right images) but I do think that photos like these is a reflection of the current zeitgeist. Even though some of the other images failed to elicit much emotional response from me, some of you might be thrilled to see them. Everything is subjective anyway. For more, check out her portfolio.

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© Li Jun, 2008

Li Jun’s Impermanent Instant draws inspiration from Buddhism’s concept of impermanence, where all existence is in constant flux and time itself, an eternally changing instance. Dust, in this case, becomes the perfect metaphor for living in an ever changing world and the photographer documents the presence left behind by inanimate objects in his apartment.

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© Yang Yi, 2007

The Three Gorges Dam project is a major undertaking by the Chinese goverment which has led to human displacement in the affected areas. Based on childhood dreams and nostalgia, Yang Yi created a series where inhabitants of his disappearing hometown remain despite the resulting floods. Morbidly whimsical, the series draws one in while providing a critical commentary on the government’s actions. The rest of the series can be found here.

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© Meng Jin and Fang Er, 2009

While we have seen some works on love hotels by Grace Kim and Misty Keasler, this series is an entirely different take on the subject. The photographers, Meng Jin and Fang Er, used the various objects found in the rooms to create sculptures. Working within the 3-hour blocks at the various hotels, the artists shed new meaning on the relationship between the temporary occupants who visit the different rooms and their contents.

For more information on the exhibitions, please visit m97 Gallery’s website.

© Yamamoto Masao

Yamamoto Masao has some of the most poetic images I have seen in a while.

© Hiromi Tsuchida

Hiromi Tsuchida’s Festival series contains some very interesting characters.

© Luo Yang

Feature Shoot ehrm, featured Chinese photographer Luo Yang, whose work revolves mainly around women.

Alright that’s the round up for today. I’m heading back to my books.

TOP TO BOTTOM, from (“Times of Fantasy“)
© Aniu, 2000-2002

He has worked with several magazines and his images are distributed by Agence VU. See more of his works over here and here (I really do detest watermarked images).