Yi Zhuang is a small village in China’s Hebei province with 2,800 inhabitants, where my grandparents spent almost their entire lives. At the end of 2015, while I was in Bremen, I received the news that the village had to be relocated due to the risk of flooding. The village would soon cease to exist. This news awakened in me a deep need to preserve the stories and memories of Yi Zhuang — for myself, for my family, and for all those who have never known the village.

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My master’s graduation project, which I completed entirely on my own between 2016 and 2019, includes photography, a short interview film, a photo book, and an exhibition.

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In 2021, Yi Zhuang was demolished. My greatest regret is that I couldn’t document this final stage due to the pandemic. When I returned to my hometown later, all that remained were grassy fields and faint traces of what was once the village.