Xinjiang's Family Life Revealed in Insightful Glance by Hailun Ma
In the heart of Xinjiang, China, Hailun Ma's Family Albums photo series offers a captivating reimagination of everyday life and kinship. This visually stunning collection, named after the concept of a "family photo album," presents intimate, fictional yet familiar portraits of Uyghur family life and youth culture in the region.
Born and raised in Ürümqi, Xinjiang’s capital, Ma leverages her insider familiarity with the region to access private spaces and portray the quotidian lives of Uyghur people away from geopolitical or human rights discourses that often dominate the Xinjiang narrative. Her photographic approach merges fashion photography with documentary intimacy, as seen in related projects where she dresses subjects to evoke her own childhood memories and collective cultural symbols like traditional headscarves.
The inspiration behind Family Albums and related series (such as Hometown) stems from Ma’s personal connection to Xinjiang and a desire to portray its nomadic heritage and youth culture through a lens that contrasts with Western media portrayals focused on repression. For example, in Xinjiang Cowboys, she fused local herding culture with globalized western cowboy imagery to appeal to younger, global audiences and highlight Xinjiang’s rich, diverse cultural identity.
Family Albums represents many Xinjiang family albums and serves as a microcosm of life in Xinjiang. The collection features family members' faces from different eras, offering glimpses into the past and present of each family. Each photograph in the series is a testament to the enduring spirit of kinship and the magic of ordinary Xinjiang family moments.
Meanwhile, in the world of fashion, Atmos Volume 09, a collection designed by Runhao Li, focuses on family, biodiversity, wildlife, symbiosis, and conservation. The collection, which features individuals named Nisha, Polar Bear, AE, Arf, Mire, Parzana, Ali, Murad, Sununa, Mofeid, and Saypahi, aims to remind us of our existence within a web of relationships and kinship. Atmos Volume 09 was intentionally blurred to appear as if it's happening now, in the past, or in the future, creating an ethereal and timeless ambiance. The ambiance of the collection highlights familial motifs and Xinjiang’s culinary delights and communal cultures.
In both Family Albums and Atmos Volume 09, Hailun Ma and Runhao Li, respectively, present compelling narratives that challenge dominant political narratives by emphasizing intimacy, kinship, fashion, and youthful spirit within their respective communities. These artistic depictions offer a more nuanced cultural representation of their respective regions, providing a refreshing counterpoint to documented ongoing human rights abuses and forced assimilation programs.
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