I am Jin Jia Ji
Featuring Jin Jia Ji Words by Nastasia Khmelnitski
Jin Jia Ji is a fashion photographer working in China and London. Jin's photos are complicated, thought through stories that present an unexpected angle of an ever-evolving reality.
It's a construction that creates a whole through the planned combination of color schemes, an interaction between people and objects. The background is built on an emotional ground that generates a narrative.
A frame never captures only a moment in time, it opens up a bigger reality and a story that yet will have a conclusion outside the visible in the image. Currently, jin is working on the #chinese people# project discovering faces, cultural definitions of humans and personalities.
Hi Jin, describe yourself in five words?
I am Jin Jia Ji.
You live between China and the UK. How do you think countries are different in terms of the fashion scene?
The most significant difference is the culture; the fashion in China started late but is rapidly growing.
What is the most fascinating aspect for you in photography?
You can present what you want to express through the image.
Last year Dazed named you as one of the five Chinese photographers to watch today. What do you think is different in the way you shoot and the stylistics of the way you see fashion?
I found myself slowly paying more attention to the current state of the object/people.
What personal projects do you aspire to complete this year, in which sphere and which topics?
I want to finish my series 'Chinese People', then visit other cities in China to shoot different people and their cultures.
Which of your works was a major breakthrough, in your opinion, that helped you to move ahead and be able to participate in more projects? What was special about it?
I feel like everything is a breakthrough for me. I continuously break and regroup myself, and the only special thing is my curiosity.
‘The camera is not that important, it's more about the way of observation.’
What gear do you use?
My phone, digital and film camera. The camera is not that important, it's more about the way of observation.
What is important while working with a model on set to get the perfect facial expression or pose you want?
An occasional moment.
What is fashion for you? Do you follow trends?
It's hard to define fashion, it's different for everyone. Just be yourself.
Tell about the last works you published with the hashtag #Chinese people#. What is this project about?
This project started with the people around me. I want to shoot more Chinese people at this moment. I found the Western always see China from a historical perspective, what I want to show are the current states of China and Chinese people.
