Next to the Wall
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
"When the spring breeze comes, green waves ripple across the mountainside view in layers. The magnificent towers of the Great Wall are like ships navigating the flower ocean, as if you were living in a poem or a painting."
— From the traditional folklore of the Great Wall
The Great Wall of China is one of the most prominent architectural wonders on Earth. While certain parts of it became increasingly popular among tourists, others are left behind to perish, unattended.
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
The parts of the Wall that attract the most of the tourists today were built between 14th through 17th centuries A.D. during the Ming Dynasty. The initial building, however, began in the third century B.C as the means of protecting the lands from nomadic barbarians. While its modern purpose is far from defending the territory, the Wall has transformed into a must-see travel destination. Besides that, it has an even more important function: the Wall is a cultural hub for many Chinese citizens. Alongside its structure, thousands and thousands of people build homes, create jobs and honor tradition.
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
Xiaoxiao Xu, a Chinese born photographer who is now based in the Netherlands, delves into the lives of the villages located at the less prominent parts of the Wall. There, young people are leaving their town to explore better opportunities in larger cities, so the old generations are left to preserve the traditions.
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
Her project, Watering My Horse, surveys a variety of topics and subjects as she examines what a life next to the famous historic site is like. Xu captures moments of beauty, when she photographs gentle, pale apricot groves or a majestic white horse on the side of a hill. She also talks about childhood and our connection with our roots when she takes pictures of children laying in a corn stack or riding in the back of a hay-filled truck. Her landscapes span from snowy mountains to desolated arches and bricks, which were once a part of the Wall. Xu's project has various perspectives for many reasons, the most important being the richness of the topic she is working on.
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
Xu honorably attracts the viewer's attention to the problems facing new, tourist-driven China. From the overcrowding of the fashionable historic sites to the outflow of the younger generation, this photographer elegantly uses her lens to shed light on these issues.
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
"I am particularly interested in the surreality of reality. I want to tell stories from a unique perspective that leaves spaces for the viewers to be freely interpreted, stories that evoke people’s imagination, that lure them to look over and over and dream away."
© Xiaoxiao Xu, Watering my Horse by a Spring at the Foot of the Long Wall
To see more Xiaoxiao’s work, click here.
