The Humanities Center has secured a grant from the Cyrus Tang Foundation for “Seeing Each Other,” a storytelling photography project partnering with Fudan University in Shanghai, China. Fudan is a leading university in Asia with a global presence. Countering mainstream narratives that frame US-China relations in terms of tension and conflict, the project will emphasize imagination, creativity, and empathy to explore each other’s identities, communities, and values.
In Summer 2026, students at UCI and Fudan will be mentored by award-winning documentary photographer, Mark Leong, whose career has spanned the world and who has spent considerable time in China and the U.S. Our student creators will first photograph local stories meaningful to them where they live in Irvine and Shanghai. Then they will host each other exploring their respective cities, sharing and responding creatively — photographically and otherwise — to each other’s work. This collaborative process will culminate in physical exhibitions shown in both cities. A final component will involve a virtual exhibition so that the “Seeing Each Other” projects can be widely accessible.
This program is under the direction of Professor Judy Tzu-Chun Wu, Faculty Director of the Humanities Center. In addition to the support of the Cyrus Tang Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting passionate problem solvers to create a more caring society, funding and staffing are also being provided by the UCI Humanities Center, the School of Humanities, and the North Oaks Huang Foundation. For more information about how to participate, please contact j.wu@uci.edu.