Pictures of creatures and critters, flowers and leaves, shadows and light—worldly wonders.


I submitted this lanterns photograph for the CURRENTS photography and moving image exhibition at Public Functionary in Minneapolis, MN. See the digital brochure and learn more about the photographers and artists here.

In my approach to the exhibition’s themes of change, flow, and movement, I thought about how I’ve felt identity, role, and place have shifted over the past years. After I moved to a new city, the world suffered a global pandemic. Time flowed differently than before, and I saw the people around me respond and express their hurt and stress differently.

I took this picture standing in a quiet San Francisco Chinatown near midnight. I thought about a 99% Invisible episode (319: It’s Chinatown) noting how historically Chinese immigrants had to present an approachable exotic to survive here. I thought of a message from my father next to a phone notification. I thought of why I was going to work the next two months in Arkansas instead of China. I thought about power, representation, value—of one being invisible yet very visible. I was fortunate the lanterns illuminated these thoughts.


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