Self-Portrait by photographer Shen Wei began in 2009 during his first residency at The Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center in Italy. It later expanded across a wide range of locations, including China, the U.S., and regions throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia, charting a deeply personal journey through nude and semi-nude self-portraiture.
At the time of its inception, Shen Wei was already an established New York-based artist, known for exploring themes of identity and intimacy in projects like Almost Naked. Raised in conservative Shanghai and later immersed in Western cultural attitudes after moving to the U.S. in 2000, he found himself negotiating profound contrasts in attitudes toward the body and sexuality. I Miss You Already emerges from this bicultural context, as both a response to cultural boundaries and an exploration of personal freedom.
The project interrogates the tension between restriction and liberation, particularly around the expression of male sexuality and emotional openness. Through the visual diary format, Shen Wei documents his process of self-reflection, emotional release, and the ongoing construction of identity. Visually, the series consists of large-scale color self-portraits captured in natural and indoor environments. This visual approach lends the work a contemplative, sometimes melancholic tone, while maintaining a calm and understated sensuality.
From early New York presentations (Daniel Cooney; Light Work, 2012) through international showings in Bangkok (2014) and The Hague (2022), the project built steady visibility. Museum acquisitions by MoMA, the Getty, and PMA reinforced its place in dialogues on desire, vulnerability, and cultural hybridity.
