The pictures above are from the series “Daddy & I” by Zhang O, a photographer originally from Hunan Province, now living in New York. The series was exhibited earlier this year at Pekin Fine Arts Gallery in Beijing.

Here is an excerpt of the artist’s statement:

By photographing adopted Chinese girls and their fathers I try to capture the love between a female child and an adult male. What is the nature of this complex relationship, especially when different ethnic and cultural backgrounds are introduced? Through the relationship of the emerging feminine power of the adolescent girl to the mature father, each image explores the unfathomable relation of the two inseparable, yet often divided cultures, East and West.

On a broader level, this project reflects my interest in the change of the power relationship between East and West. I am curious about how the West sees the rapid development of contemporary China. The growing girls symbolize the future potential of China. Like the girls adapting to their new situation, China is learning from the West to grow its economy. Is its emergence from regional power to global economic force a change that will be accepted and encouraged? Or will it be seen as a rebellion against the rules that the West has established for others to follow?

Likewise, as the girls grow up, will they remain innocent adoptees under the tutelage of their Western patriarchs? Or will their progression to maturity disturb the relationship’s equilibrium?

For more of O’s work, visit her site

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