Times paradise
This project has been shooting for more than 4 years since 2018. While taking a lot of photos, I also took a documentary. This project finally shuttles between reality and surreality.
My investigation found that most of the abandoned amusement parks in China were caused by abnormal development.
After the housing reform in 1998, many real estate developers used the construction of large amusement parks as an excuse to sell houses in order to obtain real estate benefits. Without long-term planning, the amusement park was abandoned after real estate developers obtained high real estate benefits.
On the other hand, due to plagiarism and imitation, this makes the amusement park model singular and repetitive, with serious homogeneity. There are a large number of amusement facilities and installations that are soil-like, ugly, and low-esthetically.
I found these parks through Chinese platforms, such as Xiaohongshu, etc., and also through maps. I went to about 20 large and small cities in China to shoot these amusement parks. I also met some people who came here to look for their childhood, and they became part of my works. Most of the amusement parks I shot have now completely disappeared.
I try to rebuild some elements with the forgotten amusement park. In this era of multiple entertainment and cultural shocks, I hope that this game will be valued and respected again.