Anicka Yi’s Life Is Cheap

I want to hear a little more about the process of your book. What birthed the concept?

I was promoting a scene called “Dos Dos” that I worked on with my friend Joey in Mexico. Then I met Emilie and gave her a copy and invited her to the show. She was living in New York and we became friends. One day, she came to me with the idea of a photography book and so we started the project in 2019, before the pandemic.

What made you choose Harlem?

There’s a lot of beauty in Harlem. I lived there for a long time. It’s a neighborhood that's constantly changing. While living there I was photographing everywhere I went, even coming in and out of Harlem. There’s some photos in the book of the train which emphasize the changing beauty of everyday life.

That’s so interesting. Tell me more about “changing beauty.”

Well, subway cars are constantly changing. Who knows? Maybe in ten years, we’re not going to have these cars anymore because they’re getting modernized and more sophisticated. So I wanted to capture that.

Describe Harlem in one word.

Blue.

That leads to my next question. Why “Strong Blue?”

It all leads back to my grandmother. When I was a kid that was the word she used for jeans. So whenever she wanted me to wear jeans she would reference them as “strong blue” in Spanish. Naturally, blue became my favorite color.

How did you come up with the title, “Beauty Beauty?”

At first, we thought of naming the book “Harlan Days” but then we looked at some of the photos and focused on one in particular. It’s sort of blurry and there’s a lady there with the most beautiful eyes that I always see in the same spot, reading. I’m not sure if she’s homeless. But for some reason, there’s this sign behind her that says “Beauty Beauty,” and I liked how the blurry quality fit with the doubled nature. It worked with the idea of seeing beauty in things that are not necessarily beautiful.

How would you define beauty?

Beauty is different to everyone, right? For me, it’s something with a unique color and texture. For example, today I was walking and noticed this rich, red tomato on the ground. It was broken. There was also an empty box of McDonalds right next to it. I took a picture of it and it all worked together. Tomato… ketchup… french fries. Beauty is sort of like music in your brain, like matching things together to produce a rhythm of things happening.

I like how you described beauty as rhythmatic. I’m curious about the photo of someone holding up a toy doll and a beer. Explain that rhythm.

I was coming out of the hospital with my camera and then all of a sudden I saw two people drinking a really cheap beer and playing with dolls. You can see the finger of the other person there. I was very curious about what was going on, myself. They were kind of like big kids drinking and I snapped their photo.

Do you ask people for permission before you take their photos?

I usually get close up to get a read first. Sometimes I introduce myself first but it’s like a combination of talking and taking photos at the same time. It’s a skill that you develop as you go. Some people look back, some people don’t say anything. I actually know someone who took a photo of a lady once and she hit her. You never know what to expect. But in my opinion, it’s better to ask for forgiveness than for permission.