Chinese photographer Zhang Hai’er’s sensuous images challenge outdated norms of female sexuality
Zhang’s images are raw and influential. An upcoming collection presents some of his most defining shots from the past 30 years
One of China’s most important photographers, Zhang Hai’er, who is best known for his artistic erotic images, is refreshingly honest.
“While other artists’ creations are based on their inspired spirits or wits, I am merely driven by hormones. My work is a substitute for my desire,” Zhang is quoted as saying in Zhang Hai’er: Les filles, an upcoming collection of his work from 1988 to the present.
Zhang’s shots – of everyone from his wife and female friends to prostitutes and unknown women – are unabashedly sensual and challenge outdated expectations of female sexuality in China.
Born in Guangzhou in 1957, Zhang belongs to the avant-garde generation of Chinese photographers which emerged in the 1980s. After studying stage and set design in Shanghai, he graduated from the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts in 1988.
