Photos

I am currently doing a photo-project about Shanghai's nightlife and the people operating in it. Inspired by anthropological and sociological theory on nightlife and the variety of rapid social transformations occuring in contemporary Shanghai, the basic idea is 1) that the nightlife may provide a scene, where people may play our different identities (social, gendered, sexual, occupational, etc.), which are not always possible in the daytime (perhaps especially in the still relatively restrictive Chinese society).
2) that the nightlife also constitutes an arena, where the more "traditional" realities of power and domination, poverty and social mobility are becoming very visible. An example is the glamourous bars and clubs catering to Shanghai's expats and Chinese middle- and upper-class people, which are surrounded by beggars, pushers, cigarette vendors, prostitutes, etc. A small space becomes a compressed arena for those who sell and buy, the poor and the rich, patrons and clients.
So far, I have just brought my camera to the streets of Shanghai in the nighttime, taking pictures of people and talking to them. If I get the chance, i would like to pursue the theme in a more comprehensive study at some point.

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I often meet this guy in various places in Shanghai's nightlife. He is there begging for money. Always with a smile and always until late into the morning. Sometimes he is there with his wife and sometimes they also bring a small child, which I think is their grandchild. I usually give him some money. He seems quite healthy in his body and mind, but I guess he is migrant and as such, there is no pension to get in China, so along many others he has to find his own way to earn money.
This night I met him around club Mao relatively early (around midnight) and as I brought my camera, I asked if I could take his picture. He agreed and stroke up his own version of the typical Chinese pose (a kind of "peace sign" with two fingers spread.