In conversation with Ren Hang (2012)

China’s most important photographer doesn’t care about art

I spent the summer of 2012 as an intern at a magazine in Beijing while working on a publication of my own. One day a friend at the magazine mentioned that her friend was a good photographer and perhaps I’d like to interview him for my magazine?

After a quick look at some of his photos — teens and tweens on rooftops in bright clothes or in the nude, against the backdrop of the grey cityscape — I figured I might as well; always good to meet new people.

Hang’s photographs carried the tags of nude, youth, sexuality, social norms, gay?, even in China!, and seemed enough for a story. That’s what I went with; the significance of Ren Hang would not become clear to me until a few years later.

This interview was originally conducted in Mandarin. It has been translated and edited for length and clarity. Interview by Erik Bernhardsson. Translation by Dier Zhang.

You are part of the post-80s generations that’s been much talked about as a monumental change because it’s supposed to be a generation that is uniquely independent and “creative”. But I wonder, is this really some magic property that is reflected in one’s photography?

Not really [laughs]. Can I just respond with very simple answers? There’s a lot of different kinds of influences, like eating a meal would influence you. I guess there’s some influence but it’s not really…