In response to the Xuzhou Chained Woman incident, and to the fear it instilled in me, I began searching for footage of aeroplane crashes. The image of a falling plane seemed to embody the emotional state I experienced while watching the video of the Chained Woman. I deliberately chose not to use any material from, or imagery directly referencing, the original video. This was both to avoid further desensitising viewers to the extremity of traumatic images through repeated exposure, and to avoid instrumentalising another person’s suffering.
I eventually found footage of a plane breaking apart in mid-air: its wings flapping like those of a bird before detaching from the fuselage, the fragments finally plunging together towards the ground. I was overwhelmed by the poignant beauty of this image.