Chen Man is one of the leading photographers of her generation. For a decade now she has led the way with some inspiring images for both magazines and leading international brands. Her striking and powerful photography has graced the pages of Elle, Cosmopolitan and Vogue. When we were asked if we would like to be media partner for her first UK solo photography exhibition we were more than happy to oblige.
She began her career whilst still a student at Beijing’s Central Academy of Fine Art photographing the front cover of lifestyle magazine Vision. The images she produced punctured the conservatism of China’s media industry at the time and captured the spirit of creativity that was driving a new generation of artists and designers. She has won high profile campaigns for some of the world’s leading lifestyle brands including Mercedes Benz, Adidas, Gucci, Nike and Motorola.
Chen Man’s rich and powerful images pack a real punch and she goes all out to grab the attention of her audience. She creates fantastical illusions and uses many different techniques and a vast array of influences to realise her visions including street culture, animation, sci-fi manga and pop references. Her images themselves have become the object of desire and are valued by collectors world-wide. Her photographs are anything but naturalistic being repeatedly reworked and heavily manipulated with a complex series of post production techniques. This is reality but magnified – a hyper-real, lifestyle world of dreamlike proportions.
It is no surprise that Chen Man’s rise to prominence has coincided with emergence of a consumer culture in China and the desire for luxury consumer goods. Her images are all about desire. She understands our hopes and dreams and shines them back at us.
You can see the photography exhibition from 10 February to 7 April 2012 at Chinese Arts Centre, Manchester. See www.chinese-arts-centre.org & www.chenmaner.com
