Although I studied financial English, I was always really interested in the visual arts. After I graduated from university, I had been working in the media for seven years as an editor instead of as a photographer. Before, photography was just my hobby, but so far, I have been involved in it for fifteen years. I quit my job from media twelve years ago and became a freelance photographer. Photography is a faster way to create my memory diary that involves the experience of my growth.

I used the blog to build up my personal web-zine because I love to share. A blog or social media are very different from traditional commercial media in China. I have more freedom to express my thoughts and to see them on the Internet. The young generation is also growing up with the Internet and like to share their opinions through it.

Using film to make my works is just my ‘bad habit’. I don’t like to retouch my photographs and I am also not good at Photoshop. And because I take a lot of daily life pictures, I don’t want to waste too much time retouching them. On the other hand, the images in film are good enough; I don’t need to retouch them much. I just choose the equipment. For me, using film is not a serious question.
In my long-term photography career, there’s only one topic: ‘my growth’. My weird friends, my travelling, my daily life; all of the seeing and touching in my life. I don’t have specific aims to photograph youth in China. I just pick up the easiest way to photograph since there are many, many interesting young people around me. They inspire me and I love to document their funny lives. They are not the traditional group in China; they stand for some kind of youth life.

I never related my works to politics. I think I am chasing a kind of freedom but it’s not real freedom. Even on Instagram, you cannot post any nude pictures with sex organs. Freedom is very, very important, and I try to express my freedom of opinions in a limited condition. That’s why I choose social media to share my works instead of traditional media.

In this exhibition, all the pictures are selected from my work, which spans over fifteen years. I hardly do project-based shootings. So when there is an upcoming exhibition or publication, I just choose pictures from all of my body of work. In this one, some pictures are selected from my new photo book, Flowers and Fruits, while others are selected from other works that I have never shown before.

For me, writing is equal to my personal photography; they are both my favourites. For fashion photography, I like to express my visual opinion on fashion; it’s not only because I work for fashion/creative magazines, but also I would like to use fashion shooting to create my personal works. But if I can choose, I don’t like to serve fashion shooting. I need a lot of freedom to shoot and I like to cooperate with it.

Yes, in these years, I am also trying to make some short films. It’s some kind of practice. Filmmaking is my final destination but I want to practise more and more. Film is a big and complicated industry; it’s not as easy as photographing. But now, I am also doing some art videos.

You mean specific size and frame? Usually, my works have two sizes for selling: 100 x 67 cm and 50 x 33 cm. But if you need specific sizes, we can talk (smiles).

Yes, I never think about the future. I just keep shooting as long as I like photographing. Even for my art, I never thought I could be an artist; I just chose what I liked and what I wanted to do. I don’t have any ambition for my art or for my life. Even though I may be tired of taking pictures, or even if my photos become very boring, it’s not a bad thing. I like to follow my inner thoughts and I don’t like to put any pressure on my life. So, for this question, my answer is ‘I don’t know’.