Unapologetically voyeuristic, ZHANG Ding's film installation Pry explores the relationship between the viewer and the viewed, superiority and inferiority, exploiter and exploited. This is done with rare sensitivity and non-judgmental loyalty towards featured destinies, all of which share a common denominator of difference. These differences are manifested sexually, religiously and politically, and often with severe consequences to the protagonists. The installation, which also incorporates photographs, belongs to the tradition of socially conscious documentary film. Most touching and thought provoking is the story of a middle-aged transvestite, including burlesque anecdotes about his homoerotic, at times excessive, experiences. His story reveals a life that society would criticize as degenerate. Yet, ZHANG Ding presents it as a life lived with both joy and pain. The featured characters' narratives speak for themselves without resorting to stereotypical or condescending commentary. ZHANG Ding's intention is almost celebratory in allowing the audience a rare glimpse into lives of human beings that have, against all odds, managed to maintain their pride and self-respect. The tone of the different films differs slightly; some are more introspective than others. The one trait all interviewees share is their stigmatized identity and being in a film that serves as a venue for them to finally have a voice equal to speak out against the vast majority. The series will eventually consist of seven films. So far, three have been completed.

ZHANG Ding's interest in the personal stories of anonymous individuals can be seen in his archival project on missing persons. Here, he appropriates the visual imagery of missing people by photographing missing person flyers, often spotted in nearby public spaces. He paradoxically stresses the uncertainty, while manifesting the image of the lost person through a second representation. It is an archival impulse that reveals an interest in memory, loss and personal narratives.

ZHANG Ding was born in 1980 in Gansu. He resides and works in Shanghai. He graduated from the North West Minority University, Oil Painting Department in 2003. He studied at the China Academy of Fine Arts, New Media Art from 2003 to 2004. Recent exhibitions include: Opening, Zhang Ding Solo Exhibition, ShanghART H-Space, Shanghai (2011); Huge Character, Cooperation Project by SUN Xun, TANG Maohong, ZHANG Ding, ShanghART Beijing, Beijing (2011); China Power Station - part 4, Pinacoteca Agnelli, Torino, Italy (2010); Shanghai Kino, KUNSTHALLE BERN, Switzerland (2009); ZhangDing, Wind, Krinzinger Projecte, Vienna, Austria (2008); China Power Station: Part II, Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art, Oslo, Norway (2007); Big City and A Lot of Ash – A Lot of Dust, BizArt Center, Shanghai (2005) and First International Biennale of Contemporary Chinese Art: MC1, Montpellier, France (2005).