Series 03 · People I’ve sat beside

Neighbours

2019–2025 · 7 frames · Chengdu and western Sichuan

Ordinary people in teahouses, old streets, crossings and parks, photographed in Chengdu and western Sichuan over several years. Most of them I barely spoke to.

I’m not good at talking to strangers. Mostly I just sit nearby until they’ve got used to me, and then I press the shutter.

I shot these a little at a time, year after year, with no theme. They have one thing in common: nobody in them treated me like an outsider.

Parks and teahouses

An old man writing with water on the paving stones using a long brush, a few onlookers gathered around — ▸ 01Park, early morning · June 2023

Customers sitting in bamboo chairs in an old teahouse, drinking tea and talking, most of them facing away from the camera — ▸ 02Teahouse · August 2022

On the street

A person standing in the doorway of an old shop crowded with odds and ends, a hand-painted sign above — ▸ 03Old street · April 2021

An elderly man crossing at a junction, a blue tricycle behind him — ▸ 04Street corner · May 2024

A few people leaning in to peer through the carved doors and windows of an old house, a child standing beside them — ▸ 05Old street · August 2022

People carrying things

Someone on the phone at a crossing with their back to the camera, traffic and shared bikes behind — ▸ 06Crossing · January 2020

Three people with bamboo baskets on their backs walking along a flagstone road — ▸ 07Western Sichuan · October 2019