Cao Fei – China-born video artist, theater director, photographer, writer and blogger – with COS players

This photo is China-born artist Cao Fei’s UN-Cosplayers, a 2006 photograph of Beijing residents wearing role-playing costumes. The project revisits the theme of her 2004 COSplayers film, which captured Chinese youth acting out anime fantasies. A video artist, theater director, and photographer, Cao Fei is also distinguishing herself as a writer and blogger.

In cosplay — slang for “costume play” — people emulate the appearances of fictional characters. Cao Fei’s extensive series began by following Guangzhou youths, dressed like their favorite Japanese manga heroes, romping through their hometown. Gilded and winged outfits hearken to the future and far-away cultures, but gray cement overpasses and towering skyscrapers prevent any escape from the struggling city. In her more recent series, Cao Fei casts older Beijing residents in the same absurd roles and inserts them into typical street scenes.

Complementing these imaginative tableaux, Cao Fei chronicles the artistic creations of her peers in her Alternative Archive blog and further explores virtual reality in her Second Life blog via the avatar China Tracy. With her characteristic insight and wry wit, Cao Fei captures a generation caught between fantastic optimism and reality.

CaoFei.com

Cao Fei’s (Chinese language) weblog

From Artkrush.com

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