Interview by Qimei Fu

There are many unique setups in your work, such as the boy with a snake around himself, and two girls in wedding dresses standing in front of the tree with bowknots hang around it, what inspired you to create them?

I'm a very spontaneous person. Humor is an essential way I understand the world and myself. I photograph an occurrence from combining models with the images I picture in my head. When I take photos, I have never thought about the meanings. But After shooting, I look back to doubt and question my photos.

My reference materials have been shifting from intangible abstracts such as sound, color, and smell (e.g., Eating Wind, 2011) to tangible objects such as knives and dresses. (e.g., Pyon Pyon Project volume 1, "Did You Sleep Well?", 2015) Nevertheless, my main focus is on creating portraits along with unrealistic components.

First, "the boy with a snake around himself"-I found "Reptiles Cafe" online, and I felt something good is going to happen haha. I went there with my friends. When I encountered a snake, I spontaneously came up with a scenario in my head. Nobody knows what will happen. I am always searching for funny places, and I carry some costumes around all the time because I don't know when an opportunity will come. "Two girls in wedding dresses"-If two girls or boys in wedding dresses wandering around the city at midnight, It's a bit strange, right? Pursuing this complicated feeling and strange sensation in photography, I prefer a chance event than a specific and direct concept.

How do you work with your models?

They are all of my close friends! It's free:) For me, photography is one of the communication tools, and I utilize it to interact with my models as if chatting at a cafe. If I don't have a camera, I would be an introverted person. Through the action of photographing them, I feel closer to them. They try hard to understand my intention, which is hard to be verbalized. So I consider the finished pieces are collaborations of my friends and I. My works show not only one final image but also the process of making.

Can you talk about any persons you admire as an artist?

I have a lot!

First are the contemporary Chinese art performing bodies in the 80s, Zhang Huan, and Ma Liuming. They are the first few artists in China to do performance art. I didn't know what was there the first time I saw their work in the exhibition. I was just shocked, excited, and impressed. The show spotted on the social issues in China. They connotated and radically expressed them using new methods such as performing art and installation, in addition to traditional media like painting, and sculpture. I felt explosive energy and a positive attitude without fear. They inspired me with various media to use and the motivation to take action without hesitation. So, I want to push the boundaries in the photography field. Now My art borderline is almost melting.

Second, I respect Wolfgang Tillmans as a photographer. I am a big fan of him. He taught me the importance of observation.

Last, though I'm getting older and wiser, I don't forget to admire children's imagination and creativity. They are pure without limitation. I always read children's picture books. And I love Harry potter. I go back and forth between fantasy and reality or fiction and truth.

What are you working on now?

I'm preparing for my exhibition. This exhibition is the premiere of my new series, Building the Ice World, depicting a journey in pursuit of the wonder of a child's heart and a sense of transcending time and space. It's a new challenge for me. I'm going to use sounds, pictures, texts, and photographs. In the past five years, I keep researching material photography and spacial structure in different art exhibitions. My goal is to reconsider the conventional ways of the exhibition in the photography field and extend the possibility of expression. I have been continuously changing my work.