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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Forty-Seven: How using words in pictures can expand meaning > Restaurant, Chinatown, San Francisco, California, 2007
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06-JUN-2007

Restaurant, Chinatown, San Francisco, California, 2007

There are two Chinatowns in San Francisco. One belongs to the locals, while the other charms the tourists. Both locals and tourists enjoy the cuisine -- restaurants range from this simple family-run place to establishments serving over 1,000 people at a time. This image speaks of the patrons who are not there – the restaurant seems deserted except for two employees working at a back table. The words help give this restaurant a specific location. The neon sign promotes a Chinese beer, but it also tells us exactly where this restaurant is located, and in doing so, suggests the nature of the restaurant as well.

Leica D-Lux 3
1/60s f/2.8 at 6.3mm iso400 full exif

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Phil Douglis27-Nov-2007 19:08
You are very perceptive, Vera. They could very well be in China -- many of the restaurants I saw there used red neon in one way or another. This one, in San Francisco, is no different. And the beer sign on the right, gives the image its sense of place.
Guest 27-Nov-2007 13:00
I love this one. The red reminds me of China. If you were to take a picture of just the people they could be sitting in a small restaurant in China. It is very interesting how you built a sense of location without it being in your face.
Vera
Phil Douglis21-Jun-2007 17:50
(I also doubt if many restaurants in China advertise "Bud Light" in neon.)
Phil Douglis21-Jun-2007 17:49
You are right about the mood and atmosphere here, Jenene -- this could easily be a Chinese restaurant in China, but for one word -- ''Chinatown." There are no Chinatowns in China. A "Chinatown" can only exist in cities where immigrants from China have settled and recreated replicas of their old towns, such as in San Francisco. That one word is the key to this image.
JSWaters21-Jun-2007 03:28
Sorry, 'balanced'
JSWaters21-Jun-2007 03:28
This could very well be a restaurant in urban China - nondescript except for the red glow and upside down teacups on the tables. I like how you've balance the red with the bluish purple to create a lot of drama in a very quiet setting.
Jenene
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