Chinese photographer Fan Ho’s experimentations with camera angles and cropping as well as his dramatic use of light and shadow resulted in highly stylised street scenes. Believed to be unique and appearing at auction for the first time, the present work is an exceptional example of his compositional mastery and experimental vision.

Born in Shanghai in 1931, Fan Ho was only 14 when he began taking photographs with his father’s Kodak Brownie camera, marking the beginning of a lifelong passion with photography. In 1949, at the age of 18, he moved to Hong Kong and was given by his father a twin lens Rolleiflex camera with which he pursued his street photography. During his 50-year career as a photographer and filmmaker, Fan Ho has won nearly 300 awards and titles, both locally and internationally. His work is held in such prominent institutions as the Bibliothèque nationale de France, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Hong Kong Heritage Museum and M+, Hong Kong.