“Stay-at-home” Studio
By Liu Liu
I am from China and have been living in Chicago for nearly six years. I work as a product photographer with multiple local businesses. I used to work on location before the pandemic, but after the “stay-at-home” order was issued in March I set up a home photo studio to continue working with my clients. I was also trying to figure out a way to continue my art practice while confined and isolated at home. I found it interesting that grocery shopping and cooking became increasingly therapeutic and entertaining when confined to my small apartment. The act of consuming coincided with my product photography practice, so I decided to also use my studio setup to document my daily consumption.
The project keeps changing as we move through this very unstable time. After the tragedy of George Floyd, I felt really upset. On May 30th, I decided to switch my backdrop from white to black to express this change I felt internally and externally. Later on, I put timestamps on the photos. My captions became more candid and personal, acting as both a diary and an outlet of my everyday frustration with the overwhelming news.
Empty Disinfecting Wipes Pack, used for cleaning surfaces. At the beginning of this year, I experienced anger and grief, the emotions were strong that I felt I needed to write about it. I’ve never been so active on social media. Now several months passed, I found it harder to feel things. Tragedies became normal. I don’t know if this world suddenly falls apart or it has been like this all the time, but we pretend the problems are not there.
I switched the backdrop, we are in a dark time.
Nongshim Shin Ramyun Noodle. Just before the quarantine, I was a little panicked and thought maybe I should store some food. I chose instant noodles. I bought 2 packs of 20 Shin Ramen, now they are almost gone.
I bought this duvet cover from Ikea the day after I found my first apartment in the US. After almost 6 years, a few days after quarantine, it started to tear apart. I didn't worry about it at the beginning, but the hole started growing. One night I woke up and found out I was entangled. I changed the duvet cover today.
Potatoes Peels. Made beef and potato stew for dinner, it used to be a “communist dish” among Chinese in the 60s. Being able to have beef and potato stew equals a certain level of living condition, meaning a good life.
Cauliflower leaves. The US bans Chinese airlines from flying to the US today. China also restricted the number of flights from the US to China. Most Chinese students are stranded in the US this summer.
Beef Tendon Balls, made spicy hot pot for dinner.
Today is June 4th, a censored date in China.
Orange Peel. Navel oranges from Hmart, consumed as breakfast. I bought a bottle of Vitamin C gummies before the quarantine. I told my mom that it was a way to help me build a strong immune system. Mom responded, “why not have some oranges instead?”
Potato Chips. Consumed as snacks.
Today I talked with a Chinese friend about racism. Growing up in China, all we were told about “racism” is that this is a Western phenomenon. We lack the acknowledgment of racism as we grew up in a society that has one race. Things changed till we landed in the US, we become the minority. A Chinese friend of mine talked about a teacher who ignored her for most of the semester because of her poor English. But still, we are both not sure whether that was racism or one bad teacher. And today I heard about a councilman said “Chinese restaurants don't need money” because they have made enough money and they don't give back to the community. I can be sure this is racist.
Moisturizer and Serum, applied to face.
US cases reached 2 million. But people are not that concerned about the virus anymore. Last time I experienced a pandemic was in 2003, but it was nothing like this. What I remember about the SARS outbreak was the rumor that vinegar protects people from infection, my mom boiled vinegar which made our home smell sour all that time. And that was the first time face masks were commonly used. I still remember there was one afternoon my friend handed me a white fabric mask with a tiny butterfly print on one corner. I didn't wear that mask but considered it as a symbol of friendship.
Firm Tofu. Fried with beef for dinner.
I have some flashbacks of the trips I made to national parks. It happens quite frequently. Sometimes I stood in the kitchen with a knife in my hand while my head was picturing a night scene in a small town called Farmington.