Supermodels in the Forbidden City
Chinese Photographer Chen Man Shows Ancient Tradition Meeting Avant-Garde Fantasies
by Scarlet Cheng
Chinese photographer Chen Man has been witness to the dizzying modernization of China of the last 20 years. She recalls growing up in the quiet hutongs (alleyways) of Beijing, at a time when people were mostly riding bicycles to get around. Now most of those hutongs have made way for high-rise apartments, as Beijing becomes one of the most crowded cities in the world–and one of the most polluted due to the vast number of private cars.
These days Chen has been spending more time in California, partly …
