New York and Shanghai are concrete harbors where young Chinese artists often linger. I am one of them. With expectations and reliance, our generation idealizes these locales into artistic utopias, yet sometimes we become mere fuel in urban social scenes. Growing up under the protection of our parents' era of prosperity, shielded from the struggles of livelihood and healthcare, we however collectively develop an unarticulated generational confusion and silence about our own perplexity. Viewing from an indifferent perspective under the guise of 'seeing elsewhere' seems to dominate creators' vision, as the affluent daily life struggles to retain its value of being told. The narration and creativity of the entire era are slowly regressing, and the youth, with the awareness of ourselves being culturally eroded, attempt to preserve our unique statement with eccentric visual devices. Endless emphasis on distinct visual symbols hugely obstruct intuition of seeing. I strive to concentrate on narration itself in the most straightforward manner, rather than following the universally replicated templates masquerading as innovation. The localized experience of being excluded is a significant footnote in my life currently. Shanghai becomes a geographically and ethnically closer substitute for New York among the new generation, while simultaneously they are quite different in numerous actual aspects. Alienation is my perennial theme. My sight encapsulate the vigilant distance between me and the world. This series consists of authentic daily images I captured over approximately four years in New York and Shanghai.
纽约与上海,是中国年轻一代艺术创作者常会停留的具象港湾。我是其中一员。群体带着期望与仰仗,将地域美化成文艺想象里的乌托邦,却时而在社交中沦为城市的燃料。成长在父母赶上时代红利的荫蔽下,不必为生计、医疗而奔波的特权生活却集体性地发展出暂时未被总结的代际困惑和对自我处境的缄默,「观看别处」的遥视反而占据创作者的视野,似乎远距离的客观才是表达的正途,优渥的日常生活却不太保值。整个时代的叙事与创造力在慢速倒退,青年群体在被蚕食的觉知中妄图以尽所能而怪异的外观保住个性化领地。无休止的显化阻碍观看直觉,我力图在名为创新实为复刻的普遍模板之外,以最平实的方法回归叙事本身。在地化的焦灼体验是我当下生命阶段的重要注脚,纽约与上海两座城市在青年群体中成为同义词,又互为斥力。疏离是恒久的主题,我视线停留之处,囊括我与世界警觉的距离。该系列由我在纽约与上海拍摄的真实日常图像组成,时间跨度约四年。