Self Iterating of Mountain City

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project © Tianhu Yuan - Dust and Sun. A construction truck kicks up dust under the harsh, direct sunlight. © Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project View all images ↓
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This project objectively examines a high-density mutation in Chongqing. It questions how human biology and social strata reconfigure within a space of perpetual urban renewal, where tradition gives way to the future.

A traditional neighbourhood is demolished to make way for bustling shopping districts. People are digging tunnels and building bridges to build railways, leaving behind the mountains and rivers that once defined the city's character. Citizens cope with the extremes of summer in the city known as the furnace of China. It is a city of tradition, but it is also a city looking to the future. In choosing to develop, human beings leave something behind and gain something new. People believe in moving towards a better future at the moment of choice.

By capturing these moments of transition and transformation, I aim to highlight the complexities of urban development and the challenges that societies face when balancing progress with environmental preservation. This is not a lament for the past, but an objective examination of a high-density mutation. It questions how human biology and social strata reconfigure themselves within a space that is in a perpetual state of violent renewal.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Resistance to Heat. A resident fully shielded from the extreme UV radiation. In a city where summer temperatures exceed 40°C, clothing becomes a defensive architecture against the environment.

© Tianhu Yuan - Dust and Sun. A construction truck kicks up dust under the harsh, direct sunlight.
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Dust and Sun. A construction truck kicks up dust under the harsh, direct sunlight.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Raffles City and Qiansimen Bridge. This is the heart of the city. In the distance you can see Chongqing's landmark Raffles City and Qiansimen Bridge. Nearby is a huge construction site where new buildings are about to go up. People quickly and repeatedly change the land until the center of the city becomes more and more prosperous.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Satellite Archive, 2005-2023. Satellite imagery traces how the city's periphery steadily expanded while its core underwent dramatic transformations over two decades. Hand-drawn metro network diagrams reveal the relationship between rail transit and urban regional development.Satellite Archive from Google Earth.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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The Cycle of Urban Regeneration #1. Installation view. An expropriation notice board from the Yaoziqiu community. The colour image was taken in 2020, and the monochrome image was processed from Baidu Maps Street Archive View. The colour image was assembled at the corresponding original locations of the monochrome image.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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The Cycle of Urban Regeneration #2. Installation view. Demolition rubble, derelict buildings and shiny new high-rises at Yaoziqiu.The colour image was taken in 2020, and the monochrome image was processed from Baidu Maps Street Archive View. The colour image was assembled at the corresponding original locations of the monochrome image.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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The Cycle of Urban Regeneration #3. Installation view. The Yaoziqiu community, established in the 1980s, now reduced to a path of rubble.The colour image was taken in 2020, and the monochrome image was processed from Baidu Maps Street Archive View. The colour image was assembled at the corresponding original locations of the monochrome image.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Temporary Dormitory. My neighbour. Like me, he is also staying here temporarily. Though we've lived here for six years, the house does not belong to us. These are our final days at Yaoziqiu.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Arteries of Progress. Rail transit lines cut through mountains and span rivers, redefining the mountain-river city structure. They are the hard lines slicing through the soft chaos of the city.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Now and Promise. A found collage in the real world. The billboard promises a pristine, modernist future (a hospital), juxtaposed against the reality of the construction cranes behind it.

© Tianhu Yuan - The Kite Flyer. Near a newly constructed park, a resident prepares to fly a kite.
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The Kite Flyer. Near a newly constructed park, a resident prepares to fly a kite.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Little Pink. A mobile snack stall "Little Pink" parked beneath huge railway pillars. A tiny, parasitic economy finding its niche within the voids of mega-infrastructure.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Under Station. Huge concrete piers prop up the Niujiaotuo Station. Beneath this massive infrastructure, locals find a new shaded public space to escape the scorching sun and watch the floodwaters pass.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Neighbour, Last Day in Yaoziqiu. I have lived in Yaoziqiu for about 6 years. With the development of the city and rising land prices, the neighbourhood has become dilapidated. Yaoziqiu will be demolished soon.

© Tianhu Yuan - Beyond The Window. The train travels along the river. Beyond the window lies the financial heart of Chongqing.
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Beyond The Window. The train travels along the river. Beyond the window lies the financial heart of Chongqing.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Concrete Forest. A distant view of the skyscrapers across the river from station. This is a densely populated residential area in the heart of the city, where two subways intersect. A high-density vertical habitat replacing the undulating terrain with the physical outcome of the iteration.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Holiday. Two middle-class families with their pets. The subway has made the suburbs accessible, bringing new people to replace the original resident of the land.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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The Swimmer. Chongqing, a city born along the river, has a long-standing tradition of folk swimming culture. Regardless of the season, many swimmers take to the ever-flowing river. It's less about physical exercise and more about the locals' love for life and their deep connection to the city that nurtured them.

© Tianhu Yuan - Playground. A simple playground in a new district along the subway.
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Playground. A simple playground in a new district along the subway.

© Tianhu Yuan - Image from the Self Iterating of Mountain City photography project
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Nightfall. A new office building reflects the sunset's golden afterglow. A silent monument marking the end of one day and the beginning of another cycle.