Shanghai Dreamers

I recently revisited Christian Dior's new boutique store that had been under long term renovations for the past year. Walking inside, ma mere was the first one to point out the display window images, and subsequently, I became captivated by the pictures on the store display windows and hanging around the walls. The images were nostalgic of dated Chinese photographs of factory workers, with everyone standing shoulder-to-shoulder, feet slightly apart, and stoic expressions. A kind saleslady helped shed some light, and here is what I learned: 

Titled "Shanghai Dreamers" by Quentin Shih, the oil-painting styled photographs debuts their most recent collection amongst rows of a single Chinese subject, duplicated over and over. The compositions were shot specially to commemorate the reopening of Shanghai's Dior boutique. Fascinated, I went home and this is what I found:

"My inspiration came from a certain Chinese style of group photography make a departure from a certain historical period and herald the future. I created some typical Chinese groupings; they replace themselves, wearing plastic clothes. They stand on display in vast spaces or upon a stage - because they were, and still are dreamers. As China enters a new era, they begin to stand on a world stage, self-conscious yet filled with power. 

I wanted to show the power of Chinese people standing together and a kind of socialism in Chinese history. The Chinese models are not people. They are symbols of Chinese history between the 1960s and 1980s." -- Quentin Shih