‘THE LABYRINTH’ photography book is now available to purchase
The Labyrinth
Blue Lotus Gallery, Hong Kong. 2021
Around 5 million people ride on Hong Kong’s underground network every day. Yet, to most of us this journey is nothing more than a ride to work, a means to get from A to B, a place packed with people scurrying about mindlessly. The stations are but sites of countless fleeting moments that hardly leave a mark on our minds. In this fast paced commute, do any of us pay attention to our surroundings, the colour of the station walls or the reflected light down a corridor, especially when our destination lies elsewhere and time is ticking?
Christopher Button, however, sees the extraordinary in the trivial. When everyone else calls it a day, when the stations are deprived of its regular flock, he immerses himself in the vastness of Hong Kong’s confined underground channels, and embraces a rare moment of solitude in what is usually hectic. With his Mamiya 7 medium format camera, he transforms the space into a dystopian dimension. Suddenly, we are offered a glimpse into the oddly-quiet side of one of the busiest locations in Hong Kong, one that offers an unusual peacefulness untainted by the hustle. One that is as soothing as it is disturbing. Everything seems familiar and strange at the same time: the endless corridors, the dazzling colours, the hazy mirror reflections
