Made in Chengdu

Shot in the capital of the Sichuan province, between 2014-15.

In 2014 I moved to China to teach English in a primary school for one year. I was based in the west, in Chengdu, the capital of the Sichuan province.

Chengdu, which has a growing population of over 14 million, is one of China's "pilot reform regions", giving local authorities extraordinary powers to experiment. In recent years it's witnessed rapid economic growth, resulting in heavy investment in infrastructure, such as its fast expanding metro and rail system, as well as the building of new schools to cater for the large migration of rural workers and increasing urbanisation.

I was among only a handful of foreigners living in Xipu on the outskirts of the city, and would receive daily stares from locals who rarely saw or mixed with foreigners. I used my camera to record, albeit in a whimsical manner, some of the behaviours of a city experiencing a growing sense of self confidence.