Chinatown people: from immigrant chefs to local firefighters, folk of London’s Chinatown have stories told in Instagram gallery
- A project to celebrate the people who work, shop and live in London’s Chinatown has gone live on Instagram, #HumansOfChinatownLondon
- Photographer Ken Lam and writer Jenny Lau say the project also gave them the opportunity to explore their own identities
London’s Chinatown is embracing the ability of social media to create mobile galleries on smartphones by launching the hashtag #HumansOfChinatownLondon and applying it to a series of images celebrating the people who work, shop and live in the central London community.
Photographer Ken Lam and writer Jenny Lau were commissioned by area promoters Chinatown London to identify, interview and photograph individuals, capturing their stories on Instagram posts.
“I love the storytelling aspect of photography,” he says. “With fashion photography, sometimes I thought: ‘Where is my soul?’ My job [with Chinatown London] is to take a strong portrait [of a subject] that gives a sense of their character. You have to get someone comfortable and get to know them.”
Lau has also found that the project has given her an opportunity to explore her identity. Born in Britain, she moved to Hong Kong for 11 years before returning to Britain in 1996, just before the British colony’s return to China.