Chinatown, June 11, 2008

Did she tell you? Just curious.

Did who tell me what? Just curious.

That baby looks like the Michelin man.

I really enjoy your blog – particularly the food. I can’t wait until I return to Thailand to try out the restaurant you recently mentioned in Lat Prao – I only managed to find Khai Mot Dang once in Bangkok at a market as a laab.

The labeling on this entry was a little surprising. How did you know the ladyboy and the woman pictured were prostitutes? Did you ask? Did they reveal this information? Or did you just infer this from the venue in front of which the woman was seated? Did she consent to her photograph being posted on the internet with the label prostitute pasted below it? Not being critical or judgmental…just curious.

i have been to chinatown many times but ur images bring a new perspective.

I found this site while googling Yaowarat. Some really fantastic photos (and on the food blog).

But your response to Thip’s legitimate question is pretty sarcastic/snippy. Eelaa’s musings are valid as well. I would never have guessed, just looking the photo, that the last lady is a prostitute.

And I do wonder how she’d feel about her photo on the web labeled prostitute. Will her photo be on the wall in your upcoming show with the label ‘prostitute’? And did you talk to her about it and get her permission? Surely you must grapple with these issues as a photographer, esp seeing as many of your photos have a somewhat voyeuristic quality (which is not in and of itself necessarily bad).

If you’re going to post photos for comments it would be nice if you responded to all, not just the wholly praising ones. This group of photos is a bit different than your others, and I get the sense that you’re trying to capture more edgy images. Which is fine of course, but you should be prepared for the conversation those sorts of images inspire. I should think you would welcome it.

Just some thoughts from an art lover newly converted to the joys of photographic images….