Marcel Heijnen

Marcel Heijnen is a Dutch photographer, designer, and musician who has called Asia home for over three decades. Now dividing his time between Amsterdam and Hong Kong, Heijnen’s work is driven by a deep-seated curiosity about the "human-scale" rhythms of urban life and the quiet persistence of tradition within rapidly modernising cities.

While his creative output spans multiple disciplines, Heijnen is perhaps best known for his long-running photography project documenting the cats of China's largest cities. What began as a chance encounter with a shop cat in Hong Kong in 2015 evolved into a global phenomenon, documenting the symbiotic relationship between humans and felines in the traditional trades of Asia.

Heijnen’s lens does not merely capture animals; it maps the cultural heritage of city pockets, from the apothecary stores of Hong Kong to the shikumen of Shanghai. His style blends documentary precision with an artist’s eye for geometry and light, often challenging the viewer to find the subject camouflaged within the dense, textured details of the urban landscape.

A self-taught artist in many respects, Heijnen’s photography often explores themes of impermanence and the "residue" of the past. His work has been featured globally in publications such as The Guardian, CCTV, and Al Jazeera, and is held in private collections worldwide.

躲猫猫 Hide-and-Seek, China’s City Cats

Blue Lotus Gallery presents Hide-and-Seek (躲猫猫), a definitive new collection by Dutch photographer and artist Marcel Heijnen. Featuring a comprehensive monograph alongside three dedicated city-specific volumes, it marks the culmination of his long-standing fascination with the feline residents that navigate the ever-shifting landscapes of China’s major cities.

Since 2015, Marcel Heijnen has traversed nearly twenty Chinese cities, documenting the lived-in reality of Hong Kong’s traditional trade districts, the communal courtyards of Shanghai’s shikumen, and the enduring residential pockets of Guangzhou. Rather than seeing these spaces as mere relics, Heijnen captures them as active, functioning ecosystems where cats are integral to the social fabric. His lens documents these felines as the "kings and queens" of their domains: ancestral halls, active construction sites, and the small-scale retail hubs that form the backbone of local neighbourhoods.

The City Volumes:
Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Guangzhou

Complementing the primary monograph are three dedicated city books, each providing a "deep dive" into the specific feline cultures of China’s most iconic metropolises:

• Hong Kong: A return to where the project began in 2015, focusing on the traditional shop cats that inhabit the city's dense apothecary and dry-goods districts.

• Shanghai: A journey through the quiet longtang and historic shikumen neighbourhoods, capturing the stillness of feline life amidst the bustle of the modern metropolis.

• Guangzhou: An exploration of "Old Canton" culture, where cats are found amongst Lingnan architecture, traditional markets, and the lingering scents of incense and seafood.