The true self is hidden in the unconscious by Tales Yuan

51 min read

Tales Yuan (Tianhu Yuan) is a photographer from China. 2020 and 2021 were very successful for him: 2021 British Journal of Photography OpenWalls Arles, Single Image, Winner, 2020 Life-Framer Street Life Awards, Winner. 2020 Sony World Photography Awards, National & Regional Awards, Mainland China, 1st place. 2020 Sony World Photography Awards, Open Competition, Portrait Photography, Shortlist. He has a long-standing interest in the general Nijigen subculture community. As a lover of this subculture, he explores the psychological perception of this group through his photography and promotes social recognition and subculture. He also focuses on urban growth and change to explore the enormous impact of urban development on cityscapes, people’s lives, the environment, and economic development.

Another Self is a part of his ongoing project about Nijigen teenagers in China. After a series of costumes, the young people came to their understanding of another possibility in their self-awareness. This state will be different results at different times and places, or by different observers. “Subconsciously, we have another self-individual. How do we look at it and describe ourselves? The true self is hidden in the unconscious, so which one is the real self?” The desires and emotions of the ego ultimately make us connect with them.

Like many young photography enthusiasts, portraits became one of his first themes but he focused on Nijigen. It is a subculture related to Anime, Comic and Games. The word Nijigen is a Japanese word meaning ‘2-dimensional space”- referring to the 2D worlds of manga, anime, comics movies, and games. But it also found its incarnation in real-life like cosplay with people dressed as characters from those 2D worlds. “As a kind of subculture, Nijigen culture is becoming more and more popular among young people in China”. He photographed many of these subcultural portraits, such as role-playing, Lolita costumes, Hanfu, JK uniforms, and so on.

Another Self #15 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #13 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #9 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #2 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #6 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #1 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #12 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #8 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #7 by Tales Yuan

Another Self #11 by Tales Yuan

Tales Yuan is a living in Chongqing (China), a city built on mountains. His major in college was chemistry, a subject that seemed to have nothing to do with photography. However, during his master’s degree, he bought his first SLR camera and fell in love with photography ever since.

Awards

2021 British Journal of Photography OpenWalls Arles, Single Image, Winner
2021 British Journal of Photography Portrait of Humanity, Shortlist
2021 Visions International Photography Awards, Editorial/Environmental, 1st Winner
2021 Belfast Photo Festival, Open Submission, Shortlist
2020 Art Limited Photography Awards Competition, 3rd Winner
2020 Life-Framer Street Life Awards, Winner
2020 Sony World Photography Awards, National & Regional Awards, China mainland, 1st
2020 Sony World Photography Awards, Open Competition, Portraiture, Shortlist
2020 6th Fine Art Photography Awards, Amateur, People, 1st Winner
2020 6th Fine Art Photography Awards, Amateur, Portrait, Nominees
2020 6th Fine Art Photography Awards, Amateur, Fine Art, Nominees
2019 Tokyo International Foto Awards, Fine Art, Honorable Mention
2019 1x contest “Rain”, Honorable Mention
2019 1x contest “City Skyline”, 3rd
2019 International Photography Awards (IPA), Fine Art, Honorable Mention x2

Press

The true self is hidden in the unconscious, Tagree, Sep. 17, 2019
The Wall Gallery, February, 8, 2020
2020 Sony World Photography Awards: National and Regional category winners, THE TIMES, SCMP, National Geographic, MSN News,etc., March, 2020
A Memory is a Story of Time, 1x Magazine, March, 20, 2020
Inside your camera bag, ShotKit, May, 1, 2020 Link
A Life of Possibilities – Open Call Editors’ Pick, Life-Framer, May, 15, 2020
Collection Featured, Life-Framer, June, 16, 2020
2020 Sony World Photography Awards book, World Photography Organisation, July, 8, 2020 (eBook) / March, 2, 2021 (Print)
Portrait of Humanity Volume 3 Book, BJP & Hoxton Mini Press, June, 3, 2021
TRIERENBERG SUPER CIRCUIT 2021 Book, July, 2021

Exhibitions

17 April to 4 May, 2020, Somerset House, London, Sony World Photography Awards exhibition (Canceled due to COVID-19)
26 Sep. to 16 Oct., 2020, the City Hall of Gauting, German, Gauting International Photo Week (Canceled due to COVID-19)
28 Nov. to 19 Dec., 2020, Contour Gallery, Rotterdam, Life-Framer Edition VI, digital showcase
1 May to 7 May, 2021, International Contemporary Art Centre, Chongqing, Chongqing Youth Photography Exhibition
May, 2021, VIPA 2021 Virtual Exhibition
4 July to 26 September, 2021, Galerie Huit Arles, Arles, OpenWalls Arles 2021

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Tagree

The true self is hidden in the unconscious by Tales Yuan

“Subconsciously, we have another self-individual. How do we look at and describe ourselves? The true self is hidden in the unconscious, so which one is the real self?”

“As a kind of subculture, Nijigen culture is becoming more and more popular among young people in China.”

“I hope to combine Nijigen portrait photography with conceptual photography and begin to try some forms of contemporary photography.”

“Subconsciously, we have another self-individual. How do we look at and describe ourselves? The true self is hidden in the unconscious, so which one is the real self?”

“As a kind of subculture, Nijigen culture is becoming more and more popular among young people in China.”

“I hope to combine Nijigen portrait photography with conceptual photography and begin to try some forms of contemporary photography.”

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