Two-way lens

Huie photographs an American family with Asian roots (left) and role-plays a member of the family in another photo.

He recalls being the only Asian face at his school until another Asian kid showed up when he was an 11th-grader. Huie avoided him.

"I didn't realize that I was avoiding someone just because I thought he looked like me," Huie says. "I felt that I was like everyone around me and I forgot what I looked like."

New friends often asked Huie whether he knew any kung fu, whether he was good at math or whether he was a nerd.

"You don't grow up with a mirror in front of you," Huie says. "People around you are your mirror. More importantly, popular culture is your mirror.

"It took me long time to realize how distorted that mirror is."

In an attempt to understand his identity, Huie and his ex-wife embarked on a nine-month trip throughout the US in 2001. They took more than 7,000 photos of Asian residents, recording the triumphs and setbacks they faced in pursuit of the American dream.

Huie came to China in 2010 with an exhibition of 60 such documentary photos, which toured a dozen cities over two years. He also gave lectures at various universities, museums and art schools, sharing his insights about life in the US.

Now, Huie is turning a spotlight on Chinese people in their home country and hopes to show the US audience the realities of life in China.