In a Mood for Love
Xiangyu Dong is a Chinese photographer born in Anhui and currently based in London. Xiangyu studied BA in Visual Arts Media at the University of California in San Diego, the US, and is working towards completing his MA degree in Photography at the Royal College of Art in London. Xiangyu’s work focuses on intimacy, queerness, and therapy through photography.
In a Mood for Love takes root in his personal story, which led him to research his romantic relationship with the other in contrast to self-awareness in this relationship. Xiangyu reflects on the projects and explains, “I feel that whether I'm performing in front of the camera or placing a still life in a ritualistic way, I'm creating a symbolic metaphor of tensions and dynamics in these day-to-day experiences.“ The project is a combination of portraits and still lifes that connect to the mundane, the loneliness, longing, and boredom of an empty apartment.
In this conversation, we speak about romantic connections and re-enactment of the relationship before the camera. We discuss the differences in perception of the medium of photography in Eastern and Western cultures as connected to Xiangyu’s experience. Xiangyu elaborates on the image which connects everything to a narrative – Exposure – when the main character, Xiangyu, removes his pink jumper with his back to the camera, exposing himself to the camera and his partner.
‘After some dynamics or tensions have occurred in my life, whether sweet, exciting, or conflicting, I recalled these details in my mind and asked myself where my emotions came from and why I behaved the way I did. Then I constructed these moments in my photos.’
Hi Xiangyu, what is the story In a Mood for Love about? How did you start working on it?
In a Mood for Love is a narrative of my personal love story. It’s about knowing, adjusting, and caring for myself when being in love. It was the first time I had a deep connection with someone, which was a huge challenge for me because I had nothing to refer to. Then I realised how complicated love was. So I thought it would be interesting to explore how to love someone and also how to love myself.
In the very beginning, I just tried to take photos to record some interesting moments when I got along with my partner. However, it’s impossible to use a camera anywhere and anytime to record everything. So the project shifted to re-enacting these moments by constructing a portrait or a still life in certain scenarios. After some dynamics or tensions have occurred in my life, whether sweet, exciting, or conflicting, I recalled these details in my mind and asked myself where my emotions came from and why I behaved the way I did. Then I constructed these moments in my photos. It gradually became a steady pattern after I had taken about two or three shots. So when I took the first few photos of this project, I was actually still figuring out if this pattern worked.
‘I came out to my parents when I was about seventeen, and I told them I was going to the US. I thought I would be more open to exploring intimacy there, but what I got was a huge culture shock.’
You were born in China and studied photography in the US and the UK. In what way the experience of different cultures and countries contributed to the narratives you research with your work?
I finished high school in China, and by that time, a lot of my values were already set in stone. So I think all along, I had a very traditional perception of sex and intimacy. I came out to my parents when I was about seventeen, and I told them I was going to the US. I thought I would be more open to exploring intimacy there, but what I got was a huge culture shock: both the American dating culture and the relative openness to sex felt out of place to me. It was around that time that I started learning photography, and I wanted to express this culture shock in photography.
In China, the term photography is very stereotyped in the public perception. In our family, the only role photography plays is the annual family portrait taken during the Chinese New Year. So when I studied photography in the US, I learned that photography could be a very powerful means of self-expression. But at the time, I was still shy about self-expression. So when I was shooting my early project, Shameful Intimacy, I approached a couple of friends to be my models and did some performative photography incorporating some points in their relationships that reflected the gap between East Asian and Western cultures. Today, it doesn't seem to be very mature, either technically or conceptually, but at that time, it was already a very bold attempt for me.
When I came to the UK, I think the most influential thing for me was an atmosphere that encouraged expression and breakthroughs. After I completed my first self-portrait work, I was chosen to showcase it on the home page of the RCA's annual presentation of WIP. This was a great encouragement to me. After that, self-portraits became a very important part of my work. So my work now is the most honest reflection of my thoughts. I feel that my current work is both poetic and straightforward in its expression, which, and it's evident, was influenced by both Eastern and Western cultures.
‘I believe that the ultimate goal of healing in a relationship is not to pursue a happy ending but to maintain a healthy, positive, and strong self. The key to healing is to recognise desires and learn to live with them.’
In a Mood for Love speaks of a romantic relationship, the healing process, and the day-to-day experiences. The approach to photography as healing and art therapy are themes you pursue and develop. How do you use photography as a healing tool, or what is it that allows making images to be healing?
I believe that the ultimate goal of healing in a relationship is not to pursue a happy ending but to maintain a healthy, positive, and strong self. The key to healing is to recognise desires and learn to live with them.
I think photography is a process of manifestation that embodies the hard-to-see details and mood swings of our intimacy. In fact, even the most ordinary everyday routines contain tensions and dynamics. I feel that whether I'm performing in front of the camera or placing a still life in a ritualistic way, I'm creating a symbolic metaphor of tensions and dynamics in these day-to-day experiences. When I visualise these invisible things, I can be more aware of what my desires are, why I want something, and what I want to do with it. It is actually a process of shaping self-awareness. When I have full self-awareness, I am self-consistent. Self-consistency is a state of fearlessness and a strong ego. Of course, this is not the end of it. I feel that as the relationship deepens, more unpredictable situations may arise, and there is always a space to discuss whether photography can still play an important role in more complex situations.
‘I really love the combination of natural light and vibrant colours. It's like waking up in the morning and pulling up the curtains and the sun is shining on you very comfortably and softly.’
The project consists of self-portraits and still lifes. It presents colorful and sensual images that work to create an effect on the viewer from the perspective of evoking the senses and thoughts. Which image is key in this story — the one that holds the narrative together?
The image with the pink jumper off is the most important in the whole series, both visually and thematically. I named it Exposure, which is a pun — I'm exposing myself to the camera, and at the same time, I'm exposing myself to my partner. Visually, it sets the tone for the entire work. The soft natural daylight and vibrant colours bounce through each image, touching the viewer's senses. I really love the combination of natural light and vibrant colours. It's like waking up in the morning and pulling up the curtains and the sun is shining on you very comfortably and softly.
Thematically, I believe that an intimate relationship begins with mutual self-revelation. The end does not point to a good or bad ending but to a reawakening of the self. I feel that this image, as a self-portrait, expresses, very accurately, the feeling of self-awakening. So I think it's like a clue to interpreting all the photos: it can be an opening photo or an ending photo. It depends entirely on the order in which the viewer wants to see it.
What would be your next steps or projects you’re working on?
After exploring self-centred intimacy, I realise that many of the problems that exist in our relationships are not unique to us. I have begun to look at the wider LGBTQ community. I am planning my latest research project, which studies queer intimacy. I will explore the role that the concept of homonormativity plays in shaping queer intimacy.
I have observed that in China, many people in the Chinese gay community want to live a 'normal' life due to homonormativity. It means that the gender binary role division of partners, the family form, and the partnership of heterosexual couples are becoming romantic and standard norms assimilated among gay couples. Such assimilation is harmful to the diversity and dynamics of gay relationships and can further marginalise the gay community. For the individual, the blind pursuit of such a life can lead to the shaking of one's identity. Their fantasies of a standardised, romanticised relationship can probably lead to more serious mental issues.
Thus, my latest project will focus on anonymous performance photography through a theatrical and exaggerated representation of this homonormativity to show how ridiculous it is to have an intimacy completely copied from heterosexual models. I hope my work will encourage the queer community to leave behind standardised perceptions of intimacy and try to embrace a freer, more enlightened world.
