Two families greet each other by flashlight at moonrise in the Yihefang apartment complex in Xi’an, China. Without electricity, residents make do with flashlights, solar powered lights, and an elevated sense of unity and community spirit.
2023 Photo Contest, Asia, Honorable Mention

Faint Light in the Unfinished Building

Photographer

Weimin Chu

14 June, 2022

Two families greet each other by flashlight at moonrise in the Yihefang apartment complex in Xi’an, China. Without electricity, residents make do with flashlights, solar powered lights, and an elevated sense of unity and community spirit.

These simple, quiet images tell a complex story of the suffering that the Chinese real estate market crisis has caused for ordinary people. 

Chinese households invest up to 70 percent of their wealth into real estate. High demand for home ownership coupled with rapid economic development has created a decade-long boom in residential property construction and financing. Between 2010 and 2019, China’s building boom contributed as much as one third of the nation’s gross domestic product. A presale system in which buyers pay for their apartments months or years before they are finished enabled developers to finance massive amounts of new construction. However, the debt crisis made it difficult for housing developers to service their debt and finish projects still in construction.

Although they ended up owning homes that may never be completed, with no electricity or running water, home buyers still need to repay their mortgages. The COVID-19 pandemic that left many unable to work only compounded their financial difficulties. While much has been made of the financing crisis and its effects on the global economy, relatively little is known about the individuals affected. 

Weimin Chu
About the photographer

Weimin Chu is a professional photographer based in Chongqing, China.  After studying Computer Science at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, Chu switched his career and became a full time photographer. His works document changing landscapes and the effect this has on people's lives, focusing on l...

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Technical information
Shutter Speed

1/4

ISO

3.2

Camera

ILCE-7RM4A

Jury comment

The jury awarded this story with an honorable mention to show solidarity to protestors in China and shed light on the complex outcomes of rapid development that resonate across the broader region. The jury felt that the photographer made strong deliberate choices with light and negative space to contrast the microscale of the people and the emptiness of the colossal buildings. The story helps to expose the lived realities caused by failed real estate policies contributing to an economic crisis in China.