I love Shanghai
(Shop sign in the Taikang Lu area: Shanghai)
Shanghai is not safe from the infectious souvenir call of “I heart NY”, though I see how they have altered it for the purpose of selling more t-shirts in China. This sign made me laugh when we came across it, tucked away in a recess that could almost be called a lane. The bicycles, signage and other ephemera render these spaces almost impenetrable except with delicate care. That is what attracts me to these places – their blatant disregard for the conventional and their ability to be appealing, even amongst the detritus of the commercial and residential chaos that allows this area to be what it is.
What is so amazing about Shanghai is its ‘western-ness’; some parts felt like Europe, others like Asia and this area turned out to be a frantic hybrid of the two. We ended up buying some tacky tourist rubbish that pleased us immensely, before tripping over some delightful spots like this one to peruse more home-grown designs by young Chinese designers. At the risk of sounding patronising, I believe the ‘made in Shanghai’ label attempts to turn the ‘made in China’ mark on its head by citing quality and originality rather than mass production – turning the traditional model of China as a massive cheap pool of labour on it’s head.
