[INTERVIEW] Xiao Yang: A Chinese photographer showed us Macedonia the way we couldn't even imagine

Irma Basheska Ristovska

Photographs presenting Macedonian monuments, abandoned sites, forgotten structures, in a completely new and surreal light, left the Macedonian audience speechless. Over the past few weeks, the photos made by the photographer Xiao Yang flooded Macedonian social media platforms, and people can't stop talking about the girl who has made our forgotten and abandoned spots look gorgeous, almost sci-fi movie scene.

Yang, who's originally from Beijing, now lives and works in Spain and is a part of the Chinese travel company QYER.COM, one of the biggest online travel community websites in China. So far she has visited more than 40 countries in the world, and her photos have been published and featured in many magazines, newspapers, and books, such as: ?Photographic Travel Magazine“, ?N-Photo“, ?Travelers“, ?Beijing Review“, etc.

In the focus of her interest are mainly brutalist objects, and after her Macedonia visit, she tells Nova Macedonia more about her work.

1. Could you tell us how your journey started? When did you start traveling like this and has your passion for photography and traveling always been intertwined?

I got my first DSLR camera when I was 24. I went to Cambodia and brought that camera. That was also my first solo trip experience... so yes, I think my passion for photography and traveling have always been intertwined.

Talking about my first proper light painting in an abandoned place, I think it was during the trip to Bulgaria, back in 2012. My plan was to visit an abandoned sublime communist monument called Buzludzha. This place is quite popular nowadays, but back then, there wasn’t much information about it online, and only a few people had ever visited it. So I got in contact with a British photographer on Flickr, who had been there before, to gather some information. In the end, we became friends and traveled there together. That photographer ?s name is Mark O’Neill. He is a very dedicated photographer, who has excellent skills in both lighting painting and urban exploration.

Light Painting Photography is an art form of using hand-held lights to paint and/or draw in a scene while the shutter of a camera is left open during a long exposure photograph. During the trip to Buzludzha, Mark showed me the technique of light painting and I learned a lot from him. We took amazing photos over there, which are still to this day my favorite ones. Everything was epic, from Buzludzha itself, the overall experience over there and the magic of light painting. That moment I felt the gate of a whole new world had opened! Ever since then, we traveled together to many countries, especially in the Balkan area, and many of my photos have been a collaboration with him.

2. What is your main drive? What inspires you and what is it that you want to show and tell through the surrealistic way you capture things around you?

As you can see, there are some topics I’m really into, like most of the abandoned sites, brutalist architecture, or mass concrete monuments, and many other urban structures, like towers, bunkers, or underground tunnels. I think it was due to my experience in Buzludzha, it had totally formed my taste. For me, they are all like the hidden wonders in the world. I really enjoy searching and collecting those treasures and repeating the dreamy experience. Some people are interested in this kind of place due to the historical or political symbols behind them. For me is much more simple: They are all like first sight beauty, in a heartbroken but romantic form. They are all man-made in the past but have been neglected by people today. I do view those architectures in this way: once they have been built up, they’ve already stopped belonging to humans, they have their own lives.

As a traveler, I never witness those places during their flourishing time in the past, and in the future, I also have no control over how they will become, whether they get abandoned, renovated or even completely demolished. So the only thing I can do is appreciate the very moment I visit them and to witness the current status in their life circle, to make this very moment into something that only belongs to us.

Eternity is the thing people always pursuit, but never get it in real life. Many times when I’m at those places shooting at night, I do feel I have built a connection between me and them. While feeling how insignificant and lonely we humans are when facing eternity, by doing all this, all I can do is prove that we used to have each other.

If I have to put into words what I wanted to tell through my photos, ?The Romance of Eternity“ is my answer.

3. How do you decide on your trip destinations? Do you pick them yourself, does your company make the choice? Do you specifically travel to places to make a certain photo, or do photos happen spontaneously when you travel?

My trips are all personal and not related to company business. But I do need to thank my company since it has always supported employees to travel around and provide enough vacation days. So I pick those locations by myself, doing research about them and prepare a shooting plan before I arrive there.

I shoot mainly when I go on a trip, but I spend my daily spare time searching for locations. Most of the information I get online, from related websites, Facebook groups or Instagram. I also collect them on my Pinterest by different categories or countries. Once I decide on a country to travel to, a month or a couple before the trip I will start searching for the exact location of the places and marking them all on the map. Sometimes it’s easy to locate them on the map, but most of the time there is no direct information about the coordinates. So I will just check Google map in the satellite view, and find it that way. And I also spend quite a lot of time to figuring out the accessibility of those places, since sometimes the place is demolished or the entrance has been sealed.

And most importantly, when it comes to night photography, I also need to check how the light environment is at night. Sometimes there can be street lights or artificial light surroundings, which may ruin the picture.

Sometimes it would go a little bit crazy. I remember one time I was supposed to fly to Berlin for a trip, but l lost my passport right before I departed, so I was stuck at home and spent the whole vacation of 7 days to ?walk“ around on Google maps and mark around 500 tetrapods along the coast in Japan. And nowadays my new obsession is hunting sculptures at roundabouts on Google Maps!

4. You seem fascinated by night photography and light. Why is that so?

Before I learned light painting, I was already quite interested in night photography. Ever since I saw the entire Milky Way from an island in Spain, called Menorca. I grew up in Beijing, where the air and light pollution stripped me of the chance to ever enjoy a clear night sky. So the experience of watching the Milky Way in Spain really impressed me and dragged me into the world of darkness with light.

Also, thanks to Mark O’Neill and photographers from the light painting community who taught me many light painting techniques, I got to use them to create my photos. Contrary to the typical urbex (urban exploration) shots, I feel like light painting gives me a chance to portray a different view of the shooting object. By controlling the light and color, I can choose which aspects of the object I want to present. They get transformed into my photos and generated stories that only belong to me.

The experience of visiting these sites at night is also very different from visiting them during the day. Everything is much quieter and calm. I enjoy the feeling of peace over each site, and not to mention the beautiful night sky - moonlight, dramatic fluid clouds, lightning storms, and if we're lucky enough, the amazing Milky Way will show up as well. You can never get tired of watching them.

5. From the majority of your photographs, we can definitely tell you tend to shoot mostly ruined and abandoned buildings and sites, brutalist socialist-era monuments. Even your Facebook page name ?Illusion in ruins“ suggests it. What is it in these places that attracts you so much?

It's quite difficult to answer this question. I can’t really figure out the reason, but the only thing I know is that when I am at those places, beyond the excitement and curiosity, I feel a sense of belonging. I feel the peace and romance which I am looking for. So throughout all these years, I have visited them over again and again. It's not something I insist on doing, it's simply something I can not stop doing. Pure obsession, I guess.

6. Do you usually go on a trip alone and make these photos by yourself or do you have a companion who helps you with the process?

If it is a night photography oriented trip, most of the time I don't travel alone. Besides Mark O ?Neill, I also travel together with other photographers from the urbex and light painting community, or my friends, and also my husband. They all have contributed a lot on my trips, and it’s great to have a company since staying in an abandoned place, especially at night, can be quite risky. And not to mention I don't know how to drive. And sometimes, I’m simply too short for accessing the place, especially if I need to go through a window or climb over a fence.

The shooting part, however, I can do alone, but it's always nice to have a companion to help with the lighting, or control the camera shutter, or be the model, etc. Because of the way I shoot, it usually takes quite a long time at night, sometimes I do feel very sorry for my friends who have to wait for me in the dark, especially when it's very cold and windy. So I'm really thankful to all my friends who have ever helped me during my trips.

For the trip to Macedonia, I will especially thank my friend Dee Zhou, who appears as the model in most of my Macedonia photos. She is a beautiful girl with a great sense of humor, the joy and laughter she brought to our trip are also very unforgettable.

7. You are very popular in Macedonia nowadays. After your photos of Krushevo, Gevgelija, Prilep, and Oteshevo got published and shared all over our social media platforms, people can't stop talking about the girl who has made our forgotten and abandoned spots look gorgeous. Macedonian audience would like to know, how did you come across our country? Which of the spots you photographed has had an impact on you?

Before I came to Macedonia, I had already visited many ex-Yugoslavian countries for shooting monuments. Macedonia was on my bucket list for a long time, and this summer I finally have got the time to travel.

My original shooting targets are mainly monuments in Macedonia. Makedonium for sure is the most impressive and iconic one, excellent design like no others. But there are many outdoor LED lights on the ground surrounding it, so I had to cover them one by one, using our coats and bags.

We visited the abandoned Otesevo Hotel Europa, during our stay in Ohrid. I do like Lake Ohrid, it is very beautiful and the food there is amazing. But in general, it was a bit too crowded and touristy for me. Then we visited Otesevo Hotel Europa. The structure of it is a real gem. We explored the hotel during daylight and stayed there until dark. The monument to the Prespa Council is just right next to it, which made it an even greater night.

A week before I arrived in Macedonia, I discovered the marble lake in Prilep, Belovodica. When I found it on Google Maps, I felt this is the one I have to visit! So I re-organized my travel plan to fit it in. I have been to several mines before but never been to such a huge mine with a crystal blue lake. The night view there is also breathtakingly beautiful. The entire Milky Way was hanging right above it. My heart melted. This is a place I think everyone will fall in love with.

8. Do you usually get people telling you that your photos have made them proud of their country? How do you explain this feeling your photos evoke in people’s hearts?

I do usually get feedback from people saying they like my photos, but this is the first time having so many saying my photos have made them proud of their county. I’?m very happy about it, especially as a foreign traveler.

You guys have so many amazing places, and the people I met there during our trip were also extremely nice. Many thanks for having me in your wonderful home, it is a great country to be proud of.

9. Are there any different types of projects you would like to try working on? How do you see your near future?

For the theme I’m doing now, I guess it's already a lifelong game to play since there are still many locations waiting for me to discover and light up at night, as long as I ?m still capable of shooting and exploring, both physically and mentally.

I just hope in the future I would still have enough energy to keep doing so, just like the slogan of my company ?Journey Never Ends“. 

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