Abu shot on the street exudes a "slack feeling". (Photo provided by the interviewee)
Abu and the old man "piaopie" she photographed. (Photo by Xiamen Daily reporter Zhuang Xiaojing)
Recently, the word "slack" has become popular on the Internet. Xiamen There is a female photographer who specializes in using cameras to record the "slack feeling" of the elderly in Xiamen.
This post-90s photographer is called Xu Oubu, from Xiang'an , with the online name "Abu". There are nearly 4,000 fans on Xiaohongshu. Her notes have received 24,000 likes and collections. She is well-known in the local photography circle for her unique photographic subject and style.
On Zhongshan Road and Shapowei streets, she may be found - this little girl, with handsome short hair, and shuttles through the crowd with her camera. After finding the unique old man in the crowd, she will raise her camera to quickly capture it.
Abu's grandparents mostly have a cool feeling of using the street as a catwalk: some are dressed in retro or playful clothes, some are buying vegetables slowly, some whistles while riding bicycles, and some are walking swaying with fans...Abu said that these photos are the appearance of grandparents' grandparents' life for decades.
Abu named this photography series "piaopie", which means "sweet" in Minnan dialect.
is inspired by the streets
A few years ago, the aunt gave Abu a camera, and since then she embarked on the road of photography.
is different from those who have just learned photography. What attracts Abu is not the scenic spots or natural scenery, but ordinary people. When working in Shenzhen, Abu lived in a village in the city and became obsessed with the fireworks on workers. From then on, he focused more on ordinary people.
There are many photographers who take photos of people, but it is not easy to find a topic with a personal tag. By chance, Abu posted a street photo of the elderly on Zhongshan Road on Xiaohongshu, but unexpectedly attracted many netizens to like it. Even friends who were playing photography around him thought the photos were particularly "inspired". Abu realized that after more than two years of exploration, he finally found his own photography theme and style.
Street photography looks casual, but in fact it is particularly challenging to make composition. Even if you have walked a street hundreds of times, Abu often lies in bed and conceives for more than an hour before going out, where to squat, what angle to capture, and even later color adjustments have been considered in advance.
"No matter how perfect the plan is, it will sometimes be completely disrupted when you go to the street." Abu believes that this is actually the charming thing about street photography.
Leaving and returning
There is always a sense of contrast in Abu: a thin girl weighing less than 80 pounds is walking back and forth on the streets with a big camera; she left her hometown at a young age, and she "migrated" to more than 10 cities across the country to enjoy that unique "strangeness". Now she returns to her hometown and looks for "familiarity" in the streets and alleys.
"I have been working in Macau for two years and I gradually realized that I love a free and easy life, so I started to 'wander'..." Since 2013, Abu has begun to work and live in more than a dozen cities in China. Unexpectedly, after returning to my hometown in 2018, I lived there for that "familiarity".
Once on Zhongshan Road, Abu saw an old man wearing a wide and not very fit suit. The old man's appearance reminded her of her father. "Even if you go anywhere, you can't replace the familiarity of your hometown. It's like the arcades, bluestone roads and long alleys in Xiang'an Ma Lane. The bowl of sweet potato porridge with meat floss when I was a child..." Abu said.
"Familiarity" also comes from silent tacit understanding. In the eighth city, there is an old man dressed in fashionable clothes. Every time Abu meets him, he can't help but raise his camera and "click" a few times. Facing the camera, the old man is very calm. Even if he turns on the flash, he doesn't blink. "But he never came forward to say a word to me." Abu said that he doesn't bother each other. This tacit understanding makes her feel very comfortable. "The old man has lived in this city for most of his life. The familiar environment and interpersonal relationships bring them inner peace. This is the 'slackening' that I look forward to seeing."
(Xiamen Daily reporter Zhuang Xiaojing)
Source: Xiamen Daily
