They: A Decade of Dust and Stories by a Photographer

Author: Zhao Tieliin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: They are the marginalized people of this society. They engage in an ancient yet always taboo profession—prostitution. The world they inhabit is unknown to the public, and few truly care about or investigate their origins and tumultuous lives. After enduring hardships in his own life, the author self-exiled himself to the lowest rungs of society and encountered this group of struggling women, sharing with them the same marginalized identity and perspective. Over a decade of cohabitation, he observed them from a close distance, faithfully documenting their self-taught achievements and the intricate details of their lives. A complete record of 130,000 words, 460 documentary photographs, forms 10 life stories of women, painting a grayscale panorama of social realities. They are, for the first time, presented to the world with such authenticity and directness.
Author Bio: Zhao Tieliin, male, Manchu. Born on January 15, 1948, in Beizhen County, Liaoning Province. From 1968 to 1970, he served as a youth worker in Henan. In October 1970, he became a worker at the Xinhua Machinery Factory in Xinxiang City. In 1978, he was admitted to the Industrial Automation program at Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. In 1986, he joined the Institute of Computing Technology at the Beijing Academy of Sciences. In 1989, he "went commercial," becoming the manager of the Dachen Technology Development Department. In 1990, he established two companies in Zhengzhou and Haikou. By May 1994, both companies had failed. In 1994, he became a freelance photographer. In 1996, he pursued photography and literary studies. To date, he has published dozens of photo-essays on social issues, gaining widespread public attention and recognition from domestic peers. He began publishing multiple thematic reports in journals such as (Mass Photography), (China Youth News), (New Weekly), (Light and Shadow), (Southern Weekly), and (People’s Photography).
In April 1999, he published ： (Focusing on Survival: Girls Wandering on the Urban Fringe), with a preface by the renowned sociologist Pan Suiming. In September 2000, he published ： (Alternative Life: A Photographer’s Glimpse of the Real World), with a preface by the renowned sociologist Shan Guangding. This year, he plans to publish his third book, (Bonfires by the Wei River). Zhao Tieliin was named one of the "30 Most Important Photographers in China (2000)" by (Photography Friend). The event’s organizer, Na Risong, and Suo Haijun, stated that "'prostitute,' a sensitive and difficult-to-capture subject, propelled Zhao Tieliin to prominence in the Chinese photography scene within just two or three years—a '' (sister) who made a name for herself." His photographs underwent a process of limited circulation, publication in newspapers, and inclusion in the book (The Real Lives of Urban Marginalized People). Last year, the Academy of Social Sciences published (A Photographer’s Glimpse of the Real World). This book includes a large number of photographs, accompanied by 150,000 words of documentary-style text written by Zhao Tieliin.