FIELD MEETING: THINKING COLLECTIONS – Bio & Synopsis
Ronghui Chen (Shanghai)
The Freezing Land on Kuaishou
Artist Talk
While Chinese cities are commonly thought of in terms of growth, this talk draws attention to the country’s northeast region, bordering between Russia and North Korea. Once a prosperous hub of natural resources and industry in the 1960’s, the region has dwindled to become China’s most recessionary land in recent years. Chen shares his collection of photographs which engage with the young descendants of immigrants using the video app Kuaishou. His imagery of the derelict landscapes accompany interviews with the youth, conveying an overall feeling of hesitation, loneliness and hope.
Ronghui Chen is a Chinese photographer and storyteller based in Shanghai whose work often deals with the relationship between the urbanization of China and the individual experience. Dealing with this subject matter, Chen’s first book of photographs was listed among China’s Contemporary Catalog. He has won the World Press Photo prize, the Three Shadows Photography Award & AlPA Special Prize, and the Hou Dengke Documentary Photography Award. Outside of his professional practice, Chen also acts as the head of the Visual Department at Sixth Tone, a Shanghai local English-language digital publication.
