Portrait of a Village is a series of black and white photographs taken in 2013 in Hong Jia Ying, only one of nearly 3000 so-called “Villages in the City” affected by rapid urbanization in China. This once isolated village was absorbed into the ever-expanding urban fabric of the nearby metropolis of Kunming.
Dębicki gained entry into the former homes of villagers and migrant workers, now abandoned and condemned structures, and documented the view through the windows out onto the village. The photographs form a composite portrait of Hong Jia Ying village from within the remaining empty homes of its former residents — the last images of the architecture of a displaced community.
The village has since been demolished to make way for luxury condominium high-rises.
