Hong Kong photographer Lean Lui on ‘Girl’s Universe’ and the power of femininity
Known for her cinematic portraits of friends and family, the Hong Kong photographer explores beauty, vulnerability and power
Lean Lui appears at the door of her sunny Kwun Tong studio wearing a purple-and-black chequered raw-silk dress. Its neckline and torso are fashioned after a cheongsam, buttoned and fitted until the waist where it gives way to a voluminous skirt.
Much like her photographs, the garment is feminine, balancing old-world charm and a contemporary edge.
Lui is equally equipped with a self-starter mentality. She is best known for her soft, sensual compositions, which often appear blurred or hazed, evocative of innocence, fantasy and something slightly more sinister. Her subjects are usually her sister, cousins or friends. In one shot, two girls are caught laughing between flowers; in another, a girl’s neck and shoulders are covered in bow-shaped wounds. Another shows legs in intertwining white knee-high socks.
In her studio, a sprawl of cameras and lenses line shelves while a central table holds her published books and silicone props. Nearby, a rack of clothes stands in a space allocated for testing shots, and hanging by the window is a massive print, titled White Barracks, depicting girls in naval dress carrying guns.
Lui’s trajectory has been slightly unorthodox, and her time is split between taking on fashion and commercial commissions and developing her fine-art practice.