The Life of a Funeral Makeup Artist | Jiemian
Cai Xingzhuo—Jiemian
This story by photographer Cai Xingzhuo takes us to the basement of a funeral home in Changsha and looks at the life of a funeral makeup artist. The moody images show a world we rarely see, and an occupation that’s still seen as a taboo by many Chinese people.
Superstitious beliefs about funeral homes have barred a Chinese mortician from attending her friends’ weddings, and often keep morticians from finding partners themselves because of their profession.
Despite the discrimination, Wang Dandan, the main character in the photo story, believes that her job is crucial. At the morgue where Wang works, 60 bodies are brought in every day. Wang tends to their bodies so that their loved ones can remember them at their best, and the dead can leave with dignity. Her sense of professional duty helps her cope with confronting death. “Especially when I see the body of people who die from accidents… it makes me feel it’s good to be alive. I’m lucky to be alive. It’s important to live in the moment,” Wang says.
Caption information
This story by photographer Cai Xingzhuo takes us to the basement of a funeral home in Changsha and looks at the life of a funeral makeup artist. The moody images show a world we rarely see, and an occupation that’s still seen as a taboo by many Chinese people.
Superstitious beliefs about funeral homes have barred a Chinese mortician from attending her friends’ weddings, and often keep morticians from finding partners themselves because of their profession.
Despite the discrimination, Wang Dandan, the main character in the photo story, believes that her job is crucial. At the morgue where Wang works, 60 bodies are brought in every day. Wang tends to their bodies so that their loved ones can remember them at their best, and the dead can leave with dignity. Her sense of professional duty helps her cope with confronting death. “Especially when I see the body of people who die from accidents… it makes me feel it’s good to be alive. I’m lucky to be alive. It’s important to live in the moment,” Wang says.