Mar 8

Mar 8 Photo Journal Monday: Ze Gao

All text and Images by Ze Gao

Let’s look at the Shadow

These photos are a microcosmic shadow of my daily life. I took all of the photos in this project on the way from my apartment to my studio after I transferred from China to the US.

My generation is still young and vibrant. Meanwhile we are gripped by an ageless and universal fear, getting old and being forgotten. Each time when I transfer to a new place, I feel anxious and upset. Capturing shadows is holds the intersection of life and time. It also helps me to cope with my anxieties. The scenes will be forgotten as time goes by, but the photos maintain a framed moment in time. The images can then reside deep in my heart to evoke my own mementos and imagination.

Susan Sontag, in ‘On photography’ said, "to collect photographs is to collect the world." Compared to other forms of art, each photograph is a personal experience. Each acts as a catalyst to evoke our own memories. Time and space are recorded at that moment when the shutter closes and an image is recorded onto the film. Those scenes whether in darkness or under sunshine, create a sense of déjà vu. The moment is frozen.