{"@context":"http://iiif.io/api/presentation/3/context.json","id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/iiif/3b5w669g8p/manifest","type":"Manifest","label":{"en":["What Shapes Our Communities: Jeffrey Lau"]},"logo":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/organizations/logo_images/000/000/010/original/Aviary_QPLlogo_192x192.png?1578574261","metadata":[{"label":{"en":["Description"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis interview is part of Queens Memory COVID-19 Project's video series, highlighting local businesses, organizations, and artists that contribute and are integral to our local communities. This interview was originally conducted on May 13, 2020, with Jeffrey Lau, a freelance photographer based in Queens. In the interview, he talks about his career in photography, including his international travels, and his photography work in New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, Lau highlights his current fundraising project \"Faces of the Frontline\", which features portrait photography of essential workers.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e (summary)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Rights Statement"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCopyright held by: Queens Borough Public Library\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"]}},{"label":{"en":["Source Metadata URI"]},"value":{"en":["http://digitalarchives.queenslibrary.org/search/browse/42193"]}},{"label":{"en":["Date"]},"value":{"en":["2020-06-10 (created)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Type"]},"value":{"en":["Video"]}},{"label":{"en":["Agent"]},"value":{"en":["Jo-Ann Wong (Interviewer)","Jeffrey Lau (Interviewee)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Source"]},"value":{"en":["Interview conducted as part of the Queens Memory COVID-19 Project."]}},{"label":{"en":["Coverage"]},"value":{"en":["2001-2020 (temporal)","Queens, NY; Manhattan, NY; China; Nepal (spatial)"]}},{"label":{"en":["Language"]},"value":{"en":["English (primary)"]}}],"summary":{"en":["\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: #ffffff;\"\u003eThis interview is part of Queens Memory COVID-19 Project's video series, highlighting local businesses, organizations, and artists that contribute and are integral to our local communities. This interview was originally conducted on May 13, 2020, with Jeffrey Lau, a freelance photographer based in Queens. In the interview, he talks about his career in photography, including his international travels, and his photography work in New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, Lau highlights his current fundraising project \"Faces of the Frontline\", which features portrait photography of essential workers.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"]},"requiredStatement":{"label":{"en":["Attribution"]},"value":{"en":["\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; white-space: pre-wrap; background-color: #ffffff;\"\u003eCopyright held by: Queens Borough Public Library\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"]}},"provider":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/aboutus","type":"Agent","label":{"en":["Queens Public Library"]},"homepage":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/","type":"Text","label":{"en":["Queens Public Library"]},"format":"text/html"}],"logo":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/organizations/logo_images/000/000/010/original/Aviary_QPLlogo_192x192.png?1578574261","type":"Image"}]}],"thumbnail":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/collection_resource_files/thumbnails/000/092/130/small/qm_videos12.jpg?1591894222","type":"Image","format":"image/jpeg"}],"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130","type":"Canvas","label":{"en":["Media File 1 of 1 - Jeffrey_Lau_Photographer_6-9-2020.mp4"]},"duration":2894.52798,"width":640,"height":360,"thumbnail":[{"id":"https://d9jk7wjtjpu5g.cloudfront.net/collection_resource_files/thumbnails/000/092/130/small/qm_videos12.jpg?1591894222","type":"Image","format":"image/jpeg"}],"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/content/1","type":"AnnotationPage","items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/content/1/annotation/1","type":"Annotation","motivation":"painting","body":{"id":"https://aviary-p-queenslibrary.s3.wasabisys.com/collection_resource_files/resource_files/000/092/130/original/Jeffrey_Lau_Photographer_6-9-2020.mp4?1591810941","type":"Video","format":"video/mp4","duration":2894.52798,"width":640,"height":360},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130","metadata":[]}]}],"annotations":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513","type":"AnnotationPage","label":{"en":["Full Transcript [Transcript]"]},"items":[{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/1","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: Hello everyone, and today we welcome Jeffrey, a freelance photographer based in Queens. His work has been both published by reputable publications, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CNN International to name just a few. And he has been awarded multiple accolades. Having traveled far and wide during his career, Jeffrey has returned to Queens to document the current pandemic crisis. So let's get started. So first, what prompted you to start your career in photography?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=21.0,54.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/2","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: Okay. Well first, thank you for inviting me on. Yeah, what prompted me to start my career in photography? Well, I was in my mid twenties, my early to mid twenties, when 9/11 happened. And I worked for the banking industry at the time as a designer, as a graphic designer, actually. And I think just kind of seeing the loss of life and how it really affected New York as a community, as well as our nation, I really started to second guess and started to kind of consider what I wanted to do going forward. And so, as kind of a pipe dream, the idea was to go off and cover international news and to tell stories, especially all the disadvantaged or under-reported, and to focus on that. And so I kind of switched careers and that was at least three or four years in the making before I kind of set off professionally in 2006 and the rest is history as they say.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=54.0,132.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/3","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so what would you say was your first big break into the photography industry?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=132.0,139.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/4","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: My first big break was not news-related, it was not journalism related. It was commercial advertising actually. I was, at that point, kind of deciding in a very, very poor state, as to whether or not I was going to eat ramen or I was going to pay the bills and this one photo agency at the time which doesn't exist anymore, called the Walker group, they took a chance on me with a project for Motorola. And it was Project Red, which was a project that was set up by Bono from U2 and he wanted all that support, all the proceeds, or at least a portion of it, anyway, to go to AIDS for Africa, relief, AIDS relief. So that project probably set my career on the right path. And then from there, it was just knocking on every newspaper and newswire's door and just sending portfolios in and building up my career.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=139.0,216.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/5","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so, you have done tons of coverage of international news. From what I was looking online, some of your travels have led you to China, Mongolia, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, Nepal. So during all of your travels, how has that changed your perspective as both a photographer and also as a person, as well?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=216.0,244.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/6","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: As a photographer, I think it's interesting, I kind of got into this whole arena of photography, kind of, again, like I said, with the pipe dream of covering international news, covering long form feature. And I think, even with that mindset, even starting from, I think, roughly 2003, like this is something that came into my mind that I wanted to do. And the pursuit didn't really come to full fruition until between the beginning of 2006, all the way into the rest of my career overseas. You kind of, you know, set yourself with expectations and I was smart enough to know, like, expect the unexpected, expect to be hungry, dirty, uncomfortable in every way, shape and form, especially for an American, I think, and for someone who lives in a well-to-do nation, it's certainly—that was probably the biggest thing to overcome.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=244.0,310.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/7","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: But I think that that actually was something that was—my perspective changed. Because even with that mindset, I was, I felt, you know, somewhat ill-prepared, if you will, for every ensuing experience that would occur from story to story to story. When you think you saw enough already, and that it couldn't get worse, or it couldn't get more spectacular or unbelievable, you know, there you go, something else changes, and so you kind of learned to, I think, keep yourself very open-minded. And to learn that even with us being very open-minded today, and especially in 2020, I think that we often times stigmatize things that we don't understand and I learned throughout my career, I think, to withhold judgment until I get all the facts and hopefully experience a little bit, a little bit of that myself. So I think that would be probably the biggest thing. And I think that extends from photography all the way into personal life. It's pretty much changed my life.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=310.0,392.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/8","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And then, so, speaking of going from international news to national news, you've worked on multiple projects. And one that I wanted to talk about was called, specifically, The American Experiment. Where did the idea for that come and how was that process like?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=392.0,415.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/9","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: I think The American Experiment was, like, I wish I could give you this kind of beautiful answer of like, there's this full intention, you know, that I had a beginning, a middle, and an end to the project that I had decided to do, and it really wasn't. What it was is that I had covered news for so long overseas and I had done the bulk of my reporting from there, my photojournalism work, from there. And I had felt that I had these images, some that predated my going overseas, and some that have come out afterwards. It didn't seem to have a home. And the thread through it, though, was this idea that America was supposed to be different. It was supposed to be multicultural, many peoples of different colors and ethnicities and backgrounds and religions and non-religions and perspectives coming into one place.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=415.0,485.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/10","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And I think that that was certainly, at least in my knowledge, a unique part of the world is where we live in. And so—but what does that play out to, you know, and certainly it's very easy, I think, even living in New York, for us to not necessarily always understand what Nebraskans go through and for Nebraskans to not necessarily understand what's going on with someone in California. And for the rich and the poor and for the working class and for white collar jobs to not really get along and to understand each other. And that crosses through religions and sexual preference and other things as well. So I really kind of wanted to guide in and show the audience as much as I've been able to photograph. And there's still, obviously far, far, far more out there that I'm just unable to or incapable of capturing at the moment. I really wanted to bring a series of photographs that kind of tell the American experience and that everyone's American experience is entirely different, but no less valid or invalid.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=485.0,573.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/11","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so during that project, what would you say was the most interesting perspective that you saw or something that maybe changed your mind from what you expected?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=573.0,587.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/12","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: From that, I think that for the most part—and I'm actually kind of cycling through my own images right now—and just to keep in mind that this is an ongoing project that I'll probably be adding to, hopefully throughout my career. I think, not an image that changed my perspective, but an image that, beyond anything else, really—for me, I think it has to do with the fact that I was overseas for so long. My perspective has always been the same one as in agreement to this, which was for LGBTQ rights and for civil unions to go into actual marriages. And I think that I was overseas when all of this happened.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=587.0,652.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/13","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: So while I was overseas, every once in a blue moon I would kind of read the national news of marriage, what's going on in the United States. And certainly, the gay rights movement and the LGBTQ communities movement for greater rights, in union, et cetera, et cetera, occurred. And I was just, I was off on assignment and I was living elsewhere. And so I kind of became this audience member much in the same way that my contemporaries, my colleagues, often would discuss the same things like, and they said, Jeff, what do you think about what's going on in your country? And I'm like, I think I feel the same way as you guys do. I'm just an audience member. I'm no longer in the middle of that process. I don't—I'm not talking to my friends and family about it. I'm not actively part of the community, walking out and kind of photographing, you know, and capturing.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=652.0,711.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/14","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And so coming back home and being given a chance to photograph a marriage between two men, something that I could not have done before I left, and now I'm coming in—this might be an average thing that the average American photographer could capture. But for me, it was a big deal. For me, there was almost a sense of like, wow, I'm capturing something that I couldn't have taken before and now it's legal, now it's allowed. And I think it, so it's, it's far less about a perspective changing for me, it's much more just an appreciation that I got the chance to do something like that. It was pretty neat.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=711.0,760.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/15","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: It's very interesting when you're talking about that, almost like that sense of displacement from home. So then, I want to kind of burst into my next question, which is, like you said, there was this huge sense of appreciation that you were able to shoot this moment, that before wasn't possible. So when you are shooting your photography, both in projects and commissions and things like that, what do you find tends to both inspire you? And what are your favorite types of subjects to take photographs of?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=760.0,804.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/16","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: The short answer is probably, subjects that have a far deeper meaning than just what's being taken. So I guess if I could explain that it would be—I kind of spent my career photographing things that I thought were important, but it had to be eye-catching. Right? And I mean, most photographers probably feel the same way, or at least, you know, a certain like, you know, large number. But I think what really inspires me to photograph is capturing a moment that I don't think will be seen again en masse. So, when I went away, I was asked, you know, why don't I cover New York? Why don't I photograph New York more often? Why don't I take part in the news cycle here instead of being overseas?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=804.0,875.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/17","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And for me, it was this idea that, well, I'm a New Yorker. And I live here. So it's the same. To me it's the same. Every—the more things change, the more they stay the same and really was just something for me that might almost seem to some extent, slightly mundane. And I wanted to travel to the farthest corners of the planet from America, to kind of take these like images that were astounding to the people here. But the truth of the matter is the things that I photographed in other countries are not astounding to those countries. It's just life. It's just an average life, you know? And so I think coming back, and I think that maybe this is part of like going into our pandemic lockdown and COVID-19, I think that what sparks interest in me today, especially in coverage of the news cycle, or what's going on, is things that I think are either a complete transition from, one state to another, or, in this particular case, something that I think may never happen again. Or hopefully, cross our fingers, may never happen again.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=875.0,959.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/18","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: Yeah, so I'm always looking at the change in state from one to another. I guess that's the most—yeah, I think that's the best way of explaining it.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=959.0,969.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/19","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so, I want to go back to something you just said where, you know, what we think is super different is the normal for people in the area that you're covering. So I did want to talk and ask about a project that you have called China in Flux. I was looking at some of the photographs and I found it really interesting. So if you can explain what the project is and kind of the thought process behind that one.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=969.0,998.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/20","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: China in Flux is something that I actually probably thought about within the first year of living overseas. And I spent all of my time actually being based in Beijing, and just, from there, catapulting to different countries and different provinces of China as well. And so, I think living in China long enough, you see a lot of interesting things that actually, in some ways, you kind of see, they parallel New York. And I don't think that you see this actually very often in other cities.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=998.0,1039.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/21","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And the short example would be, you know, China is, you know, number two in the world economy, incredible in terms of their capacity for production. And they are starting to innovate. They're starting to do some really, really big things. And a statistic that I don't know is valid today, but at least some years ago, a few years ago, it was still valid, which is that about roughly 80% and I want to say that I'm not clear that this statistic is still correct. Somewhere along the lines of 80% of China is still living under the poverty line of Ghana. Whether or not that's true today or not, is up for debate and I'm sure there's somebody out there who will know that number. But that is often juxtaposed with this ultra rich elite with a incredibly wealthy second or third generation of people who are driving Lamborghinis and Mercedes S-classes and, you know, decked out fully in Versace and Gucci and whatever luxury brands you can imagine. And, there's some scenes that I have where, there are people who are just walking down the street carrying these things. And then there's an old lady pushing a cart of recycling and maybe making two or three U.S. dollars a day out of that, you know?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1039.0,1142.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/22","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And so China, in my perspective, and in my opinion, is a country that's going through or has been going through quite a bit of growing pains. How do you preserve the old and how do you take care of the old and how do you take care of the past while catapulting yourself into the future? And what does that look like photographically and how does that differ from region to region? And I think that that's kind of what China in Flux was. It was this idea that there's still, like in many other nations, it's not just specific to China, mass amounts of inequality, where there's a very small percentage of people who are really benefited overall, from the overall economic boom. And that there are oftentimes people that got left behind, the environment that gets unregulated and gets poisoned. And I think that that's definitely something that I wanted to focus on in that project, was the juxtaposition of all of these different elements. People fighting for religious rights, people fighting to petition to have a greater hold over their own civil liberties. And then, yet, at the same time, people who are just fighting to make a dollar.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1142.0,1238.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/23","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so going off of that, I'm also aware that in both Beijing and New York, you have done documentary work as well. So, if you can speak about documentary work and kind of where the similarities, but also differences of that with photography come into play.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1238.0,1263.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/24","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: In terms of the actual process of photography? So, I think that there are things that—so I think that there's like two main components to document documentary photography, or street photography, or photojournalism, in general. Okay. And that is—part of it is character of person, the photographer themselves, and how they approach what they're photographing, and how they decided they're going to do that. And I think another part of it is based on environment.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1263.0,1305.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/25","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: So the first part is—I've been asked a number of times in my career is, how do you get so close to people that you don't know, that aren't necessarily ready to be photographed? Like, this is not a long form feature where you're following people, the same family around, but, you're kind of in a more breaking news moment. How do you get so close to people? And that's just based on photographer. Like, how do you read a situation? How do you read if it's okay to get close to them or not? Do you snap 50 photos or just one? Are you prepared, are you ready? How is your stance as a person? Do you look aggressive? Do you look compassionate? I think that how you project yourself as a photographer really does make a big difference in how people perceive you. I think that's the most basic fundamental part, but I think the second part to it is also equally environment.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1305.0,1374.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/26","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: There are areas like Beijing where the thing that was kind of helpful in some ways was that I looked like everybody else. I'm also Han Chinese. And so, walking around Beijing meant that I just could blend in at any time. And if you weren't Han Chinese, or if you were, you know, not Asian, you would probably be stared at more often and under much more scrutiny. And so that's something that's definitely—I play to my advantage, you know, the environment was similar to my ethnicity. But, in other cases, like for instance, coming back here to New York, depending on the neighborhood in New York, regardless of how compassionate or tough, or whatever my demeanor is, it comes less into play. And it comes a lot more into play of is that neighborhood one that has many Asians in it or is it a neighborhood that doesn't have any at all? So, I would probably have a much more difficult time photographing in the South side of Jamaica, you know, as opposed to in Flushing or in Bayside or in some other neighborhood or town where it's multi-ethnic and part of a different—at least with a mix of Asians. And so part of it's blind luck, with the environment, and part of it is your demeanor.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1374.0,1486.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/27","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so, over the span of your entire career, you've been to multiple places, you've had these amazing opportunities. What would you say has been your favorite, either favorite memory, or favorite assignment that you've been on in your career?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1486.0,1515.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/28","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: Favorite assignment? I don't know that there is fortunately and unfortunately, an answer to that question. I think that the assignments that have been the most meaningful are probably the ones where, after that assignment was over, whether it took days or weeks or years, that a change was made based on, and not obviously my own solo coverage of it, but the collective coverage of the journalism community, that things changed because of it. And sometimes things would change for the worst, but most of the time, 90% of the time, things changed for the better.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1515.0,1570.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/29","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And there was an assignment in Nepal and I'm probably going to butcher the name, but the series that I called it was the last Gadhimai. And it's this Hindu goddess that is celebrated, I believe it's every four years. I could be wrong, it could be every two, but somewhere between every two to four years. The Hindus that would come in from both India and Nepal would come into Nepal, into this one province, and they would have this sacrificial offering to the goddess. And that practice, there's anywhere from eight or a thousand to 2 million animals slaughtered in a single 48-hour period of time.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1570.0,1627.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/30","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And it was something that was very, very—it wasn't just about the loss of animal life. It was more than that. It was the economic loss, it was that nine out of 10 people who were sacrificing their animals were far, far, far below the poverty line, you know? And so there was almost this sense of exploitation. It wasn't just from an animal rights issue, it was a human issue. And based on the collective coverage over the years on this project, or on this event, the Nepalese government basically had deemed that they were no longer going to do it, that they were going to stop the, at least the physical animal sacrifice part. Now, as to whether or not that's actually changed, I haven't been around to checkup on that. But that was the official announcement and it was the first time the Nepalese government had actually declared that. So, I think things like that, and there's probably a number of stories that I have covered, where the coverage, again, collectively with the journalism community, made big changes. And so those are probably my favorite.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1627.0,1711.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/31","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so going off of that, what advice would you have for any photographers that are beginning of their career and any tips that you would suggest for them?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1711.0,1728.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/32","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: The biggest one is, and it's for the lack of a better phrase, and it may come off a little direct and brash, but: don't be lazy. I think that there is an inherent difficulty. Because being a photographer, whether you want to work full time for a newspaper or you want to be a successful freelancer, I think that you have to want that specific industry that you want to target so badly that you're willing to sometimes go through countless, sleepless nights, to go through rejection, to keep honing your craft. And I think it sounds easy, it sounds kind of very basic to say that. But what I've actually seen in even some of the photographers of my generation or younger is that they want to be photographers. Then they want to be able to pay bills with it because it's something that they love. And so, they want to target something here, and they want to reach that point, but midway through, they already have had enough success in this other industry that's not specifically what they want to do. And they're like, I've heard more often than not, I'm happy here, it's fine. I've reached that middle point, and then certainly I still wish them the best success. And I think it's fantastic that they're even doing something that they love. But if you really want to pursue the thing that you love, you know, and go all the way, you have to push through the discomfort of constantly leaving safety.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1728.0,1861.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/33","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And so one of the ways that I would say that is, there are more photographers working in the United States as wedding photographers than anything else, commercial advertising or journalism or portrait portraiture or anything else. Wedding photography is fantastic. It's amazing. There's like so much out there that you can capture and you can get, and I've seen some incredible photographs. I've also seen some people who never intended to be a wedding photographer and they wanted to push into portraiture or commercial advertising or journalism or landscape or something else. But the comfort of being there prevented them from pushing past that. And I don't think that's for everyone, but I've also seen some people who were fantastic at landscape and they were known for it, but that's not what they wanted to be known for. And so, I think I less have a recommendation for young photographers who are looking to do something, and I have more of a recommendation for young photographers who are looking at something very specific. If you want to do that very specific thing, don't be lazy. Don't be complacent and keep pushing through. Not only hone that craft, but get it out there, beg, plead, you know, be humble and get to the point where you can show your work.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1861.0,1960.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/34","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so to go off of that, so currently right now you are back in Queens, New York, and you are seeing Queens upfront. So, like we mentioned before that there was a sense of displacement, now you're seeing it in person. So how has your version of Queens changed from what you're normally used to?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1960.0,1990.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/35","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: Well, I mean, Queens has always been a hub of all sorts of people and it's busy and it's productive and it's colorful and it's all these wonderful things. I think during the, if you're referring to the lockdown, I think that that's definitely been something that's been quite shocking. I remember the first day I remember the following 24 hours after the official lockdown was instated. I remember waking up and hearing no cars with me up in the morning. Normally I wake up at like six or seven in the morning and there'd be cars coming down the street, like all the time. And it was just quiet and I think seeing the emptiness of Queens, seeing the emptiness of Flushing emptying out, Jamaica emptying out, Sunnyside emptying out, with very few people, and I think that that's something too that like, I think is kind of like a key thing here.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=1990.0,2068.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/36","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: You know, smaller towns that might be elsewhere, in other states, if they go into lockdown, it might just be empty. For New York, and I think in Queens specifically, seeing 10 cars on the street instead of a hundred or five instead of 50 is alarming, it's really striking. It's a really big difference. Whereas in other states and other counties, perhaps, that might be a norm, anyway, for them. But for us, I think it's really, really different. And so I think having those areas, having Flushing empty other than 10 people kind of getting on or off work as essential workers, I think that, all of these scenes showing an empty New York is pretty profound.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2068.0,2125.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/37","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so how would you say that has kind of affected your day-to-day routine? Both as a photographer, but also as a person living in Queens too, as well.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2125.0,2138.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/38","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: I think as a photographer it actually compelled me to go out in a very, very physically distanced. I want to be very clear, very physically distanced form, being completely by myself with, you know, proper PPE going out there. And I started off photographing empty streets, and that was something that I did. This is a project that's coming up soon, and it went from that to covering the Bowery Mission, which is something that they commission you to do. And then I was commissioned to cover a funeral that occurred a couple of weeks ago. And then after that it just kept snowballing.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2138.0,2187.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/39","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: I started seeing more and more content. And for me, that compelled me—like I said, I'm always talking about the differences and the transitions from one state to another. And to see Queens transition from one state to another, from an incredibly, incredibly thick, rich busy hub, to something that's very, very sparse and empty. The only thing you can count on seeing every half hour is a cop car with the sirens on, just rushing down the street. But I think that that's changed my desire to photograph the community or the lack of community. And I think that as a person, it's really made me value much more what I took for granted earlier on, which is, I think, the richness. I think I keep coming back to that same word in my head: the richness of Queens. The richness of what it has always had to offer. And oftentimes I think we need to lose it in order to be reminded of how great things were.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2187.0,2272.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/40","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: Yeah. And so speaking of some of the documentation that you've been doing during this time, I did want to talk about your Faces of the Frontline series. So, if you can go into detail specifically about that.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2272.0,2288.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/41","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: So Faces of the Frontline is something that, again, I wish I had this monumental, like, \"this is the beginning of middle and end.\" But it was a project that kind of snowballed, positively speaking, which is—I started off with just one portrait. And photographing that portrait, I kind of, I really wanted to make the subject look powerful. Strong. And so, I kind of looked at that, the results of it. And once I was able to figure that out, I thought to myself, you know, there might be something here. I could maybe do this again. And so, I tapped somebody else, and it's a firefighter that I know and photographed him and that worked out as well.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2288.0,2351.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/42","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And I then tapped another person and another person. The next thing I knew I was on the phone with every friend and family member and colleague, current colleague, former colleague, emailing everyone, just reaching out to get as many frontline workers and essential service workers that I could. And, it was just bouncing all over Queens and Manhattan for the most part. Those two boroughs are the ones that I ended up focusing on, and just getting their stories. And kind of taking that series of work, or that body of work, and wanting to bring not only awareness to New York City, but to support relief efforts with Doctors Without Borders and the Bowery Mission. And so I think that's more or less kind of at the crux of the project.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2351.0,2418.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/43","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so, with Doctors Without Borders and the Bowery Mission, how did that partnership start and what is the current, I guess you could say, partnership description that you're having with them?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2418.0,2433.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/44","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: So for Doctors Without Borders, there is no actual partnership. That's just sending support, direct support, whatever proceeds. So I should kind of backtrack a little bit and say that the series—the hope was to bring awareness to and to paint powerful, hopefully powerful, portraits of these frontline workers. And in that, to drive fundraising, you purchase these prints, you know, which, I'm working with Picto, a fairly well known and prominent fine arts printer in New York City. And they themselves have their own Bowery Mission fundraising drive with a number of artists of which I'm part of. I believe there's something like 90 artists, 90 photographers, that are part of this project. And, up to date, they've already raised $20,000 in donations for the Bowery Mission in regards to print sales.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2433.0,2506.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/45","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: And so I'll be working with them to print these and ship these images out from my own series. And 50% of that will go to the Bowery Mission, 50% will go to Doctors Without Borders. Now with Doctors Without Borders, there is no form of relationship, that is just a check sent directly in for relief and PPE for their organization, as they continue to work overseas. With the Bowery Mission, that is a relationship that I've actually had for many years now. I've actually worked with the Bowery Mission and photographed and covered things for them for the last six years. And so this is kind of, hopefully, our way of giving back to them as they are still working with quite honestly the most disadvantaged population during the pandemic, which is the homeless and the disadvantaged and people who are finding it very, very difficult as they struggle with the loss of jobs and resources and opportunities.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2506.0,2573.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/46","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so, in the process of documenting for this specific project, what would you say has been the most inspiring story from these frontline workers that you have heard so far?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2573.0,2589.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/47","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: Boy, there are quite a few, to be honest. I think one that really, hits home for me, is—there's a nurse practitioner, by the name of Elaine. And she was a nursing student at NYU during 9/11. And she found herself going from that to being pulled into, helping out with whatever she was allowed to help out with in the triage, the makeshift temporary triage facilities at Chelsea Piers during that crisis, during that attack. And how that became the New York that she knew and the New York that she was a part of. And, if I'm not mistaken, she's a lifelong New York resident. And I think she's at least lived for many years in Queens, if not her whole life. And for her to go from that and to have her entire career thus far being bookended by both 9/11 and the COVID-19 pandemic, I think that's pretty incredible, to see that passion and dedication to one's craft and one's profession.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2589.0,2691.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/48","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so, that kind of ties into my next question, which is, with everything that you've seen, everything that you've been documenting, what do you think is the most hopeful thing that will come out of all of this?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2691.0,2714.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/49","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: I think the most hopeful thing that's, personally for me, I think that's coming out of this—and I don't know that it's something that's capturable with a camera—is, maybe it's just from my networks, but I actually really think that it is something that's been pretty prevalent in most circles in most communities is the amount of old friends who are just reaching out to each other. But just simply saying the same thing over and over again. But it never loses its meaning, which is: Hey, are you okay? It's been a long time. I hope that everything's okay with your family. Is there anything I can do to help you out? The fact that I think we are realizing more and more how important these relationships are, as much as there is going on and there are always going to be people who are desperate or angry or hungry, or, maybe even potentially unfortunately ignorant. I've actually seen a lot of kindness, even on the street. I've seen people still open doors for each other as they're walking in and out of a 7-Eleven or some bodega. I am still seeing people say, thank you. I'm still seeing people treat each other like human beings, you know, or at least the way that we should treat each other.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2714.0,2827.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/50","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: And so, before we end our interview for today, I do have to ask where can people find you online and to learn more about your work?","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2827.0,2840.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/51","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: Yes, so, my website is www.jefflauphoto.com. That's Jeff Lau Photo dot com. You can find out more about my work there, and I'm also on Instagram @jlauphoto that's J Lau Photo. And so, yeah, @jlauphoto or JeffLauPhoto.com.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2840.0,2863.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/52","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jo-Ann Wong: Awesome. Well, thank you so much for being a part of our interview series, and I wish you all the best of luck in your documentation of the frontline workers.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2863.0,2875.0"},{"id":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130/transcript/61513/annotation/53","type":"Annotation","motivation":"transcribing","body":{"type":"TextualBody","value":"Jeffrey Lau: Thank you, Jo-Ann. And thanks for having me.","format":"text/plain"},"target":"https://queenslibrary.aviaryplatform.com/collections/943/collection_resources/25735/file/92130#t=2875.0,2894.52798"}]}]}]}