Hope everyone is having a great 2011 so far, thought we would start the year off featuring the photographic works of Yan Ming. We came across Yan Ming through flickr awhile back and was immediately drawn to his images. His work reminds us of the nostalgic black and white images documenting general everyday life taken during the late 18th to early 19th century. Each of his images manage to encapsulate the old and new China simultaneously, capturing everything in a fairy tale like state. He treats all his subjects with a deep sense of compassion which shows throughout his photographs. We got in touch with Yan Ming and asked him what his work meant. YMY Collective

"My photographs are not conventionally realistic, nor are they contemporary art. Rather, they are portraying the present from a present perspective. China is a country full of fantasticality and bizarrerie. I live in this society which contains an enormous amount of latent meaning and contradiction, both of which make it what we call ART. The origin, as well as conclusion combined with this contradiction at present and eternal value, is my urge. Everybody and everything in such a capricious developing country is constantly experiencing mess of frustration and uncertainty. To meet the right people at the right time and space, where I get to feel the same peace, anxiety and dignity, is my great expectation.

My works are an observational experience obtained in self-exile. In shooting them, I turned myself into a physical labourer, although only on a temporary basis. The persistence in candid shooting ensures the documentary style and presents a first-hand account. I focus on people right on the spot, taking the most typical snapshots. I represent the true feelings of the ordinary people in real life, and approach the changes in the society from my own perspective. In an effort to be mature, authentic, solemn and meaningful, I took all of my photos on film. Only in this way can classic works be certain in such an uncertain time. People have no choice, they all make me feel peace and dignity towards them." Yan Ming