Chen Sida

Artist Bio

Chen Sida is an amateur writer and photography enthusiast. Born and raised in Shenyang, he informally studied photography and learned several musical instruments and writing before reaching adulthood. During his studies in Beijing from 2020 to 2024, he participated in the setup and operation of numerous art events of various scales. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he developed an interest in ruin photography and urbex, documenting dozens of ruins in Manchuria, Beijing, Hainan, and Hong Kong.

Dust of Modernity

Artwork Description

This work, Dust of Modernity, includes images of several ruins in the artist’s hometown of Shenyang and in Hong Kong. It records these forgotten fringes from a certain distance, observing how nature transforms man-made structures, how small figures on the periphery confront the big era, and how complete silence replaces the hustle and bustle. In the ruins, time is the protagonist. The ruins themselves are the most direct interpretation of “deconstruction,” as buildings that best represent modern rationalism, such as factories, residences, and schools, have collapsed. Thus, this becomes a “non-modern” and “non-structured” space. Perhaps in such places, modern people have the opportunity to experience a kind of irrational freedom.