Behind the camera: K.S. McMullen on filming docu-fiction ‘Nail House’
I love hearing from passionate artists who reach out to share their works – photo essays, poems, short films – a reflection of their time, consideration and dedication….
里弄
Details that define a shikumen lane
What I love about photographing old shikumens and lilongs are the designs and motifs threaded into the exterior and interior of the buildings. How elaborate or simple, modern…
The Invisible Stain of Japanese Comfort Houses in Shanghai’s Lilongs
If you look closely, the legacy of Japanese presence in pre-war and war-time Shanghai can be found across the city’s old neighborhoods, dating back to their emergence as…
Conversations: Jie Li on “Shanghai Homes: Palimpsests of Private Life”
Jie Li’s book Shanghai Homes has been 10 years in the making. Combining memoirs and analysis of communal hardship and familial secrets, the book focuses on the lives of…
Making friends in high places: Photographing Jiuan Fang (久安坊)
“What did you say you wanted?” The old lady stared wide-eyed at me. Her granddaughter, who was diligently practicing her characters on the dining table, eyed me curiously….
Xingping Lane (星平里): Going, going, gone
Clutching my wrist tightly, she spoke with a heavy, sour breath, “You have to come back tomorrow with the photos,” and leaned closer to make her point, “We…
Shanghai shikumens, London gables and Facebook
Things have gone a little quiet around here of late. Work has wholly consumed me for much of February, leaving very little time (and brain cells) to blog…
Private surveillance in old shikumen lanes
They watched with a deceptive air of insouciance that masked a deeper, almost territorial, wariness. Stray cats, in various hues of black, brown and ginger, rested lazily on…