I always had an interest on evolution and change of society and photography has accentuated this interest, because through my images I feel that I can understand society and therefore people better.

Chinatowns have been a very important point of trade of Chinese goods all over the world, and had helped immigrants to adapt to the new country, while promoting their customs and traditions. Also, of all ethnic communities it is the one I had more interest, because I find it more ambiguous. But this project is not about the place; nor the Chinese traditions, it is about the habitants of Chinatowns and how they have created a merged community.

“Wherever you go do as you see”, claims a proverb, but for many years Chinese habitants in foreign countries seemed no to care about merging with the rest of the society of the place they lived, to the extent that Chinese communities have been named closed and dangerous.

In the work of Arnold Genthe’s, we can see this closing, most of all because of the use of ethnic clothing and because of the scenes showed. And I think it was his purpose, because in much of his photos you can see the traditions of the portrayed. Genthe’s work is amazing, I found it while I was investigating about Chinatowns for this project, and right away I realize the difference between what he found back there at the beginning of last century and what I can find right now. Chinatown’s residents have change and have merged.

Chinatowners are no longer as Genthe’s showed us, at least not what we can see at first sight. If we walk by any Chinatown of course we will see signs on Chinese language and all sorts of Chinese products, but if we pay attention, we will also see that they like baseball, they buy tennis shoes and they drive American cars, and for me, this demonstrates that merge has been done.

I think that sooner or later even the closest communities merge into one bigger community or evolved society, but is this an act of survival or it is just a matter of time? Can individuals resist to adaptation? What is the cost of resistance? It’s easier to adapt?

Taking as example Chinese communities in foreign countries, I want to talk about social adaptation. It is not my intention to dictate what is good or wrong, just to portrait what is going on, in terms of society merge.