Invisible Theatre

My name is Tim Gao. I am a freelance photographer based in Shanghai, China. My black and white photographic works is a long-term personal project on Shanghai street. I have lived in Shanghai for over 9 years and I explore Shanghai, where urban city and residential lanes are hidden and unknown to me and impact my emotional attachment to the city.

Street photography is not just a sharp triggering of shutter to shape the outside world in the form of light and shadow – it is simultaneously a curious observation and emotional perception of what’s happening in the ordinary streets at any moment when unpredictable dramas and realities are actually taking place.

When I am walking the streets I try to capture the ephemeral and dramatic realities and reconstruct them into a new and multilayered world – the paradise of my lost memories. Street photography not only enables me to create a documentary view of the unique Shanghai street and the culture behind it, but also reveals the extraordinary and metaphorical aspect of Shanghai – an invisible theatre of mystery, drama and nostalgia.

To me, photography is merely a personal and intentional media, as well as a private diary of self.

You can find more of Tim Gao’s works at his website http://timgao.com/