"At first, when I didn't speak the language, I would hangout in pool halls and practice counting balls in Chinese. Icouldn't hold a conversation but I knew how to play and Iknew how to smoke cigarettes. Later my Mandarin came and I could go to dinner with people or hit the karaoke clubs. Mr. Tian was a whiskey wholesaler and one of our first friends. His brother owned The Red East-a popular nightclub and karaoke house in Jishou where I got my first taste of provincial nightlife. I began to develop an idea for the kind of ...
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"At first, when I didn't speak the language, I would hangout in pool halls and practice counting balls in Chinese. Icouldn't hold a conversation but I knew how to play and Iknew how to smoke cigarettes. Later my Mandarin came and I could go to dinner with people or hit the karaoke clubs. Mr. Tian was a whiskey wholesaler and one of our first friends. His brother owned The Red East-a popular nightclub and karaoke house in Jishou where I got my first taste of provincial nightlife. I began to develop an idea for the kind of pictures I wanted to make, but I knew it wouldn't be possible in just one year. It was important that I avoid typical imagery-the Mao posters and military, the futuristic cityscapes-and remain true to an experience separate from national narrative. I wanted to make pictures that didn't necessarily read as China. Personal photographs. Private photographs." -Rian Dundon
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