2011

​

Sunrise is a portrait series of Mao and his rise into becoming the first leader of a unified China. In the iconic Mao portrait, most notably found at the entrance of Tiananmen Square, a sunrise is deliberately used as his backdrop representing a “new dawn”. This image is digitally altered where the horizon backdrop becomes the symbolic portrait of Mao. Color densities depict his rise to power and the waning of that power in his later years. 82 Sunrises are depicted, each representing an age in his life. Mao was the only leader during his time to successfully clear out the imperial political structures, pivoting China’s growth in a new direction.