"The Lams of Ludlow Street" is an investigation into the life of one Chinese family living in New York City's Chinatown neighborhood. Growing up in New York City I have watched most people regard Chinatown simply as a tourist attraction and a weekend destination for dim sum and cheap counterfeit goods. While I have never lived in Chinatown, my grandparents do, and I knew that Chinatown was more than the stereotypical images seen in travel brochures and postcards. Although I am half-Chinese and have spent a considerable amount of time in Chinatown, I never experienced a bond or connection to the neighborhood or the culture; I always felt I was a visitor. At the beginning of this project, I knew I wanted to get behind closed doors and photograph more than the stereotypical images of Chinatown's street scenes. I wanted to experience more of the daily life of Chinatown.

While accompanying a local housing advocate for several months, I met the Lams on one of our home visits. I returned several times to the Lams' home with photographs, and Shirley and Steven were always very friendly and welcomed me into their home. I increasingly began to participate in their everyday family rituals and to recognize the dynamics and relationships within their family. I went to weddings, helped with the food shopping, went to the children's school and eventually traveled to China and Hong Kong to visit their relatives. I began to feel like family.

Even though I have been involved with photography in some way since the age of fifteen, I never expected to become so close and emotionally tied to my "subject matter." I now understand that we are who we are not because of some socially constructed stereotype but because of our personally unique histories and experiences. We live in a culturally complex world where cultures mix and influence one another either subconsciously or deliberately. There are no universal life plans. I am who I am because of my family history, while the Lams are who they are. As I became closer to the Lams, I recognized elements in their lives that I shared. Will I ever know what it means to be "Chinese?" The answer is no. But can I attempt to understand how a single Chinese family might live? The answer is yes. There is no way that by simply photographing the Lams I could ever answer my own personal questions. However I discovered a greater understanding about human nature that I never expected. The questions I have always had regarding my Chinese half were ultimately addressed in a completely different experience that I originally envisioned as I began to understand the Chinatown family I never had.