SIAS University, Zhengzhou
China House, London
Yaxing neighbourhood, Zhengzhou
Chessington World ofAdventures
Hai Yue Shopping Centre, Hebei
Trafford Centre, Manchester
SIAS University, Zhengzhou
Chessington World ofAdventures
China’s Occident, England’s Orient (2022-- ) explores simulated landscapes and architectural replicas in China and England, examining how cultural symbols are detached from their origins and recontextualised, and ultimately become a sign of exoticism. From Shanghai’s Thames Town to the full-scale replica of Big Ben in Zhengzhou, these environments reflect China’s fascination with Western culture. Conversely, places like Manchester’s Trafford Centre, with its exoticised Chinese-themed street, embody Western fantasies of the Orient. Through documentary photography, this project critically examines authenticity, cultural appropriation, and the power dynamics embedded in cultural representation. It invites viewers to reflect on how place and identity are constructed within an increasingly globalised and hyperreal world.
By exposing the hyperreality of these spaces, China’s Occident, England’s Orient challenges viewers to question how place, identity, and heritage are constructed within a globalised world still shadowed by its colonial past.
︎︎︎ (Research & Writting) Framing the Other: Cultural Simulation through Architectural Imitation
China's Occident,
England's Orient.
(2025)
Photographic Installation
Variable Dimensions
Digital C-type prints on Transparent paper, LED panels, looping video on monitor, chairs, wooden desk, photo books.
Part of the group exhibition Moments Towards the Self, Moments Towards the History at London College of Communication, May 2025.
By transforming these architectures into illuminated, almost commercial display cases like an estate agent, the glowing façades highlight the buildings’ status as visual signs, stripped of depth and sold as dreams. The lightboxes make the buildings literal beacons of simulation — attractive and consumable. In both China and the UK, these spaces stage mirrored fantasies shaped by colonial legacies, global capitalism, and the power of images. When a space’s meaning is reduced to its visual consumption, what happens to authentic cultural identity?
Photobook
China's Occident,
England's Orient.
Hardcover Photobook
China's Occident,
England's Orient.
Hardcover Photobook
Dos-A-Dos binding
148mm x 197mm
Designed and bound by artist
Printed at London College of
Communication, May 2025
Photobook Flip Through Video (Duration: 11min 10secs) (Double-click for fullscreen, right arrow key to fast-forward.)
Tai'andao,Tianjin
SIAS University, Zhengzhou
Academy of Fine Arts, Hebei
Thames Town, Shanghai
Chessington World ofAdventures
Chinese Garage, Beckenham
Trafford Centre, Manchester
Wing Yip Superstore, Birmingham
Thames Town, Shanghai
Thames Town, Shanghai
World Park, Beijing
SIAS University, Zhengzhou
Battersea Park, London
Wing Yip Superstore,Birmingham
Victoria Park,London
Chinese pagoda, Birmingham
Replica of Tower Bridge, World Park, Beijing