I have always been an avid fan of cartoons, growing up with the Hong Kong series Old Master Q (老夫子) by Alfonso Wong. The strips often placed its protagonist in comically unfortunate situations. One scene in particular inspired this work: Old Master Q fails to board a crowded bus, returns the next day in armor, and falls flat again. While laughing at his misfortune, I recognised my own struggles with similar issues—and realised how disturbingly relevant these social dynamics remain in Singapore today.

Titled 人山人海 People Mountain People Sea, this series pays tribute to the cartoon while drawing directly from local issues. The Chinese idiom translates literally to a “huge crowd,” but in Singapore’s context, it also evokes the influx of foreigners (the “crowd”) alongside the man-made environment of “mountains” and “seas”—symbols of the city-state’s success in marketing itself as a global playground.

By roughly superimposing torn-out Old Master Q panels onto my photographs, I create a disjointed timeline. The awkward harmony exposes contradictions in everyday scenarios, while injecting humour to prompt both laughter and critical thought. The images are not merely nostalgic but satirical, inviting viewers to reflect on the tensions beneath Singapore’s polished surface.

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Hu Qi Ren’s 人山人海 is presented at the 10th Singapore International Photography Festival as part of Shifting Images: Photography from Singapore 2000–2025, under In Circles.