Photographing at the Scene of a Suspected Homicide in Yuancun在员村一场疑似命案现场照相

This work was photographed in an urban village in Yuancun, Guangzhou. After visiting a local ageing community, I encountered a large group of residents gathered beside a barrier. Elderly people, children, and dogs were all looking towards the same residential building. I instinctively photographed the crowd before noticing that several police officers were present.

People at the scene spoke of a possible fatal incident inside the building, yet their accounts of the number of deaths, the floor, and the circumstances contradicted one another. I later searched news reports, social media, and police announcements, and returned to the neighbourhood to ask residents, but I was never able to confirm what had happened.

The photographs preserve only the periphery of the event: the crowd, their concentrated gazes, the police, and an ordinary residential building. The event itself remains outside the frame.

The work reflects on how many events leave no searchable record, and on the limits of documentary photography. A photograph may confirm that a moment existed, while remaining unable to explain it.

这组作品拍摄于广州员村的一处城中村。一次社区探访结束后，我在街口看到大量居民聚集在栅栏旁，老人、孩子和狗都望向同一栋居民楼。我下意识地拍下人群，随后才发现现场有多名警察。

围观者谈论着一起可能发生在楼内的死亡事件，但关于人数、楼层和经过的说法彼此矛盾。此后，我多次搜索相关新闻、社交媒体讨论和警方通报，也曾重新回到现场询问居民，始终无法确认那天究竟发生了什么。

照片最终留下的只是事件的外围：围观的人群、集中的目光、警察和一栋普通居民楼。真正发生的事情始终处于画面之外。

这次经历使我意识到，大量事件发生后不会留下可以搜索的记录。摄影能够证明某个时刻曾经存在，却未必能够解释它。作品由此讨论信息的缺席、公共记忆的有限，以及纪实摄影面对未知现实时的无力。