Focus on Guangzhou

All images © Angela Stapleford.

Images from top: Spiritual Journey, Stillness, Washing, Street Style, In Good Time, Worship, Worhip II, Purpose, Change and Harmony.

This project took place in Guangzhou, South China in April 2006. It was a collaboration of The University of Westminster and The University of Guangzhou and involved Chinese and English students working together to explore South Chinese culture through the photographic image. The "Focus on Guangzhou" exhibition includes work by all the Chinese and English students who took part and has been exhibited in the Xinyi International Club in Guangzhou, the Guangdong Art Museum and London's Gallery West. A book of the project "Contrast", has also been published.

See Exhibitions page for more information.

A personal reflection on the project: Stillness in Guangzhou

My immediate impression of Guangzhou on arrival was that of a city on the move. The streets were busy; many new buildings were being constructed. The rapid pace of development seemed evident wherever we went. Yet in the brief time of our visit it was possible to find moments of stillness and calm among the bustle. In temples, at a deserted rail station, in the homes of workers, market places and city streets. These places could be full of life, noise and excitement in one moment and still and peaceful in the next. The life of the city was fast paced, but when heavy rain fell everyone paused, took shelter and patiently waited for the storm to pass. Workers took the chance to rest and chatted to monks. These are the impressions I recall when looking back at images taken by both Chinese and English students during the project. In the same way I felt that the Focus on Guangzhou photography project was also a combination of movement and stillness, of noise and quiet, of busy fast work and of contemplation. A group of students and staff achieved an incredible amount in a very short time. Photography has the unique quality in making still what is constantly changing. Guangzhou struck me as a city that is ever changing but that has a strong identity and character. The images we made froze moments of a fast city and fast lives and picked out small details of everyday experience, that were both familiar and foreign to us.

Contact Angela Stapleford