shashasha

Composed of imaginative, varied, and at times erotic portraits, James H Bollen’s photomagazine-slash-photobook “See You, Taiwan Special” is as much an expression of the photographer’s sensibilities as it is of the model’s personalities, tastes, experiences and creative ideas. Focusing on a collaborative relationship, Bollen, a longtime resident of Taiwan, found virtually all of the participating models through social media. In his foreword, Bollen cites works by JG Ballard, Stanley Kubrick, Francis Bacon and Lao Tzu as inspiration. The photographs vary in style, tone, and location, ranging from snapshot-like shots in urban centers to red-tinted science-fiction-esque scenes and nudes in the island’s dense nature.

“See You, Taiwan Special is a collection of portraits of women taken in a DIY style.
Some of the locations in this issue have been chosen to reflect Taiwan’s distinctive character (…)
I found virtually all the women photographed for this issue on social media. As with the Shanghai and Hong Kong issues, I explained to them that See You doesn’t contain any advertising, and that the photos would be a collaborative process. Almost all of them selected what to wear and whether or not to use make up.
I asked each of the women if they would like to share any personal information, such as their profession, social media accounts and website addresses. The majority chose to give some of this information.”
― from James H. Bollen’s foreword