In the exhibition ‘Chinese Journey’, the Rotterdam-based photographer Eli Dijkers takes the viewer on a journey through China. Dijkers is fascinated by this ‘Land of the Dragon’ that is undergoing such a fast transition that it seems to have changed with every visit. The photographer is an eager observer and nothing seems to escape his attention. On his journeys through Shanghai and Fujian he pays considerable attention to capturing his surroundings as well as people and animals. Dijkers’s images show a photographer in transit; often with a poetic gaze and always driven by an eager passion.
Large cities are great because they are full of people. Life is taking place right before your eyes, like some kind of movie
Driven by an eager passion
Zooming in or out of Eli Dijkers’s work will reveal a kind of visual poetry of light and life, of past and present, of strange and familiar structures and of people and animals in small and large spaces. His photographs show that, despite the hustle and bustle of the city, he always succeeds in finding his focus again. He has an eye for strange, almost surreal moments that stir the imagination and leave ample space for the viewer's own interpretation. His affectionate attention for the animals that are treated quite differently in China than in the Netherlands is particularly noticeable.
Eli Dijkers
After a career in the pharmaceutical industry, Eli Dijkers (1978) allowed himself the time and space he needed to develop as a photographer – and it paid off. In 2012, Dijkers graduated from the Rotterdam Photo Academy with the project ‘Temporal Existence’, showing his interpretation of the city of Rotterdam. In 2017, Dijkers received the Porto Coeli Artist Residency Award during the 11th edition of the International Contemporary Art Biennale in Florence.
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