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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Twenty One: The Marketplace -- crossroads of a community. > Mobile newsstand, Beijing, China, 2006
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14-MAR-2006

Mobile newsstand, Beijing, China, 2006

This Beijing newsstand is ready to roll at any time. It was the incongruity of its
transient, impermanent nature that drew me to this scene. The large yellow column acts as a beacon of color, leading us directly down into the papers, which are squeezed into the narrow space between that column and another. Space is a premium in Beijing, and this method of selling papers makes the most of the space available. The salesman, meanwhile, has free reading material and takes advantage of it when he has the time to do so.

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Phil Douglis30-Apr-2006 04:12
This image is indeed very similar in concept, Shirley, to your image athttp://www.pbase.com/wangxh/image/58575276. You are right -- your woman stands much closer to her goods than this man does. Your vegetable vendor seems to take more of a physical interest in her veggies while she reads, while my vendor distances himself from all his papers except the ones in hand. I am not sure, however, that this newspaper dealer has less interest in his business than your vegetable lady shows. I think he stands where he stands because that is simply where he feels most comfortable leaning against the ledge. There are elements of incongruity in both images -- most of your vegetables are behind a fence, asking the viewer to wonder how they can be easily sold. Meanwhile, the newspapers draped over this bike, are very incongruous and quite ingenious. Thanks for drawing this comparison for us, Shirley.
Shirley Wang30-Apr-2006 03:27
This reminds me of a few shots i made of a girl reading in markthttp://www.pbase.com/wangxh/image/58575276. Both readers are absorbed in their reading, but yours stands even further away, indicating even less interest in his business.
Phil Douglis21-Apr-2006 23:07
Wonderful comment, Celia. Thanks for seeing what I saw, and putting it into such vivid perspective. I was particularly interested in your mention of my framing with the poles here -- I did the same kind of thing with the tree, the shadow and roofline the shot of the Beijing tourist athttp://www.pbase.com/pnd1/image/58750579
You had asked me why I did that -- and the reason is the same as why I included both poles in my frame here. They pull you in and push him back, and give him a sense of privacy. The frame within a frame on my Beijing tourist locks him into his relationship with that tree and its shadow, in the same way those poles lock this fellow in with his papers, etc.
Cecilia Lim21-Apr-2006 19:51
I love the way the colours work here to create two different moods in the image - The excitement of news and information in its wild array of shapes, fonts and colour scream out with the backing of the bright yellow on the right, while the dark greys and browns of the man's clothing and background on the left help to define the quiet and peace the man seeks as he distances himself away from his wild newsstand to read his paper. Makes me wonder... which of all the newspapers and magazines was his choice? I like the way you've also framed him with the poles on the edges of your image. By creating depth with forground and background, you distance him away, placing him in the back and giving him a sense of privacy as well.
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