The January issue of That's Shanghai features profiles of and pictures from five of our favorite Shanghai photographers from the past year. The first is Canadian Andrew Rochfort.
“I find that the area behind the Bund is so much more interesting and colorful than, say, Zhongshan Lu. It feels lived in, like it has multiple purposes, rather than just hosting expensive hotels and clubs. It’s also a neglected area: I figured I should show it some love.”
Andrew has been living in China for nine years, and has set out to capture the feelings of Shanghai’s bustling neighborhoods. In last year’s Blackened By Light series (featured in last year’s That’s Shanghai photography issue) he focused on the city’s darkened alleyways and neon-lit side streets. For this year’s work, Behind the Bund, he gives some love to the winding, often ignored network of roads just beyond the city’s most frequented tourist destination. (Flick through the gallery below.)
“Shapes, colors and angles - as clichéd as that sounds - always play a big part in why I shoot something,” the 37-year-old Canadian says, “I really like to shoot people in relation to their surroundings. A good zoom lens is essential: for me, it’s best not to disturb the subject.”
Rochfort will have his Blackened By Light series on exhibition in Canada this summer, and his previous projects have included a series exploring life under the Yan’an Expressway and a set of rooftop images taken “before everyone and their mother started sneaking up on rooftops.”
In the future, Rochfort plans to expand his neighborhood shots into his old stomping grounds.
“The former French Concession is where I live, and I love it, but I have a lot of trouble trying to capture the essence of it. I’m going to give Wukang Lu another try this spring. It’s easily one of the most beautiful streets in the city.”
// For more of Andrew Rochfort’s work, check out www.andrewrochfort.com
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