My first project, in the calm of your arms, began as one of self-exploration by proxy of my intimate relationship with my partner at the time. I intended to explore the dualities present in our relationship: togetherness and tension in private and public spaces, individuality and similarity, and concealment and exposure.

In doing so, I found that the photographs also became a means of expressing my fears and reluctance toward being seen. Growing up in mainland China, I have been unable to broach the subject of sexuality with my conservative family. The narrative I depict in my photographs is one which I have actively kept hidden from them. When including myself as a subject, I often hide my face in shadow or turn completely away from the camera articulating my fear of being seen or found out.

The project concluded when my now ex-partner and I decided to end our relationship.

I was lost not being able to photograph my ex-partner and I began photographing myself without her. Boredom, loneliness, and aimlessness prompted me to make photographs of myself and my surroundings. Photographs of myself and small moments and details in life became a way of understanding myself, chronicling my state of mind during this period of time.

After spending time working through these photographs, I decided to build on the images from in the calm of your arms with new photographs as I continue to explore my identity through new relationships, revisiting scenes from my childhood, and returning to China and my family. I then went on a journey of searching and reminiscing. Photographs from this period oscillate between loss and discovery, and meditations on the past while also looking toward future uncertainty and possibility. There are sentimental and seductive images from my newly emerged intimate relationship, mixed with photographs that grapple with our shared confrontation with uncertainty, wandering, searching, and longing. Through the making of the photographs, I tried to understand life at this time, at this age, and face the struggles that are often part of coming of age.

I am interested in stills in contrast with moving image, multi-image form, and the physical presentation of photographs. I believe that using multiple images to depict one scene functions as a bridge between a single”decisive” photograph and video. It extends a moment and slows down viewers’ process of recognition.

Moreover, I experiment with how the manner in which images exist on pages and walls affects the viewer’s experience. Multiplicity, the pairing of images, the scale of and physical distance between images present new layers. My experimentation with these devices help me to convey my experience with time and memory.