Questions
1. The meaning of documentary photography for you:

i am interested in in the change of society and the reflection of this
change in peoples lives.

2. The concept behind your project

With photography, i want to document people’ life and enviroment and also
their attitude.
It has a historical aspect, i would like that people also in 50 or 100 years
can know about our lives today.
From a sociological point of few, the images can show the economical and
social changes of our society

3. How did the idea come up

It was easy to visit peoples homes before the ’modernization and opening’ of
China started. People lived close to each other.
Now there is more distance, less chances to see people’s homes, we meet
outside, or write e-mails etc.
I wanted that also now people can see how other people live, a little bit
going back to the time when people were closer, more familiar with each
others life.

4. The rich and the poor in your eyes
They are the same for me, for my camera, it doesn’t matter if they are
foreigners, countryside people, Shanghai people, all are just people. I am
not looking down on the poor or up on the rich, i shoot with the same
distance, same attitude.

5. How did you get access to the houses of all these people? Has it
been easy to convince them to get photographed?

At the beginning through relatives and friends, they introduced me to many
people, then this people introduced me to others, the cirlce got broader and
broader.
It was often not so easy to convince people. Many people here are now very
self protective, protective of their of own space, the home became much more
a private place in recent years here, many refused, protection of own image
plays also a role.

7. Your conversations with the people you photographed.
i asked normally 3 question
- how is your life situation now
- what is your wish, hope
- what is the biggest pain/trouble at the moment

8. Your method of working with interviews.

It was always a conversation, i kept the 3 questions in mind, but we talked
about many other things, mixed them up with many other questions

9. How much differ people when they are in their living rooms or in
their bedrooms?

(LH i think a translation error, from his answer it looks he replied to "how
did you select the room where to take the photo"

It was a ’subjective’ choice but one i hope represents the host.
The people showed me all rooms, i was looking for the place which represents
the people best (their economic status, hobbies, beauty ideals etc)
Many of course had just one room, so i was just selecting the angle, which
showed  the special feature of the family/home best.
’
10. Shangai Living in the 22st century
i don’t know, i just see how the society develops, i am not fururologist, i am a
documentary man, but as society develops, i will shoot, document the
situation of the society and the peoples who live then.

11.

``What is your most desired thing to do if without any particular
concern on time, money and energy?’’

Create a photo museum, with photos from all the different periodes of china,
collect historical photos and exhibit them, do catalogues etc

and ``What is the biggest torture now in your life?’’

(xing you yu, li buzhu)
If there is something i know already that i can do, but i can not do it yet

 "What is your current living condition?’’

OK, satisfied, not rich not poor.

Is money important to you?

important, an important tool.

11. What is happiness for you?

To be able to do what i like to do

12. How did you pursue photography?
i studied music, Erhu (an traditional Chinese string instrument), but i had
an accident with my hand and couldn’t go on, then i toke up photograpie imn
1980

13. Photographers you have as a point of reference?

Robert Capa
Ribo

14. In your interviews you have mentioned that you come from a Chinese
wealthy family. How has it been be Chinese and rich twenty years ago?

Yes, very few people had ’10’000 rmb’  then, we had so much already 30
years,
it is a good life, since nobody had money, cloth and food was no problem for
us, while many struggled with that. We could eat a little bit better, dress
better, but besides that we could not buy much, there were ’ration
tickets*)

’) everything then was ’rationed’ that is, each household had right to buy a
certain amount of rice, oil, sugar etc, so to buy things you needed money, but you needed also the ’tickets’, just
with money alone you couldn’t buy anything

15. Does your house look like any of the houses you have photographed?
I have a room in an old house,  it’s proper, has some paintings, perhaps
similar to some ’cultural workes’ in my photos, it is not very nice, but i
like it most, it’s close to nature, i can hear birds. I have also an other
home in a new upper class development, but i don’t like it.

16. How are things in advertising and film in China now?
the advertisment industry develops well, the economy is better, so the ads
get better, all the big international companies are here, the local
companies develop strongly.
The movies are not doing well yet, art movies have no public, no money, many
director regress, give up a personal direction, ticket sales is the only
aim, but they don’t succeed, commerially and also not artistically.

17.Your future projects
Shanghai streets/alleys (’Shanghai longtang’), it is a longterm project,
life in Shanghai alleys from 1980 to 2005, i have taken the photos already,
now i have to take them out, sort, make a book.

18. Your biggest wish for the future

peace on earth and that China develops smoothly