The book features dream-space photo collages created by Xu Xiaowei. By combining visual representations of objects and places with ready-made images that randomly appear and disappear in contemporary Chinese society, the artist reinvents his memories. The artwork reflects the personal turmoil experienced in the face of rapid changes in Chinese society. Through non-linear and fragmentary stories that unfold in a dystopian fantasy world that is both pre-modern and post-industrial, the artist tries to convey this agitation. Using reconstructed photographs, the artist constructs a space of memory that lies somewhere between the tangible and the absurd.
Xu Xiaowei is a highly successful professional photographer from China. Over the last ten years he has worked with well-known fashion brands such as Bazaar, Elle, LOfficiel, Modern Weekly, Life Magazine and Self. At the same time, he has pursued his artistic passion as an artist (he initially trained as an oil painter) and collaborated with some of the most prominent contemporary Chinese artists. He also created a series of photography-based artworks that stood out from his fashion photography. He won Gold in Press/Fashion at the Prix de la Photographie Paris and Award of Excellence at Communication Arts magazine in 2017.
Dr Joshua Gong is a leading expert on contemporary Chinese art. He was a recipient of the Young Scholar Grant, Tate Modern, 2015.
