The ubiquity of the smartphone this
side of the millennium has made
a photographer of everyone – and
the likes of Facebook, Instagram
and WeChat our exhibition spaces.
Technological advances are making
it easier for even the most rookie
of snappers to take, and even edit,
striking images with just a flick of a
finger. So where does this leave the
photography we once knew,
the skilled and highly
technical art form?
The professional
photography
scene in
Shanghai is, in
fact, booming,
with an array of
new exhibitions
opening this
month alone,
including Wang
Yishu at C14, Feng
Fangu at OFOTO
and Charles Pétillon
at Magda Danysz Gallery.
Alongside these, long-standing
M97 Contemporary Photography
gallery has moved to a new spot
downtown, a distinct space on
Changping Lu, near Shaanxi Bei Lu.
‘Over the past decade,
photography has evolved in a
way that no one could have ever
predicted,’ says Steven Harris,
M97’s director. ‘Our conception
of it evolves too, as it is now an
extremely accessible medium. One
which almost everyone believes
they can universally understand as a
visual language.’
Harris explains that while it’s
easy to become overwhelmed by
photography in the digital world,
the rise of social media and
new technologies have helped
to grow the art form like never
before. ‘People often tell me that
photography is one of their favourite
art forms, but they’ve never been
to a photography gallery,’ he says.
‘The accessibility of photography
is amazing, and the world of
photography owes a lot to the rise
of camera phones – however much
the art world might wish to
dispute this.’
Our constant
exposure to
photography may
mean it now takes
more to impress,
which for
Harris, is both
a challenging
and exciting
prospect.
‘Personally,
I hate taking my own
photos now, and I own
a photography gallery.
It is just as easy to drown
out skilled photography in large,
open art galleries, as it is by being
exposed to amateur photography
every single day. Big gallery
spaces can become a superficial
experience. In smaller, more
interesting spaces, the artist is able
to play with the succinctness of the
space, and the viewer is forced to try
and understand the levels of nuance
involved in the works.’
M97’s current exhibition is
Luo Dan’s When to Leave, which
uses unique collodion wet plate
processes to produce timeless
images of desolate Chinese
landscapes. Their unique new
gallery space takes over a long,
narrow converted 1940s factory,
set against the backdrop of the
city’s urban rooftops. ‘When Luo
Dan saw the space here he was fired
up about it. Our space enables the
artists to surprise themselves with
what they can do.’
At C14 Gallery, Wang Yishu’s
new exhibition uses photography
to explore the possibilities of
the human form, as an art that
lends itself exceptionally well
to encouraging the audience to
imagine what could be going on
outside of the work itself. Taking
an entirely different approach,
Feng Fangu at M50’s OFOTO
uses his photography as a way of
manipulating time frames, taking
the audience on a historical journey
inspired by the mysterious tale of the
twelve bronze heads of the Chinese
zodiac statues that were looted
during the destruction of the Old
Summer Palace of the 19th century.
So this month put down your
phone and take a stroll along to one
of the city’s fascinating photography
exhibitions. ‘We want to educate
people on the technicalities
behind spectacular photography,’
says Harris, ‘and show that as an
inherently mixed medium, there is so
much more to it than a few filters on
a phone.
Luo Dan’s When to Leave is at M97
Gallery until July 16 June.
Wang Yishu’s Open Ending is at
C14 until Sunday 19 June.
Feng Fangu’s Confusion is at
OFOTO until Friday 1 July.
Entry for all shows is free.
