hyperpop in chinatown 

model + stylist + Makeup: Mai Linh

creative directed and shot by maia feruzi

monday september 29th 2025 3pm

📍ping tom park & chinatown, chicago, il

shot on canon eos rebel t3i 18-24mm, 70-300mm

concept

I met Mai in the bathroom at an Amaarae concert and our energies instantly clicked. This has happened to me many times before but this is the first time that the plans to hang out and connect outside of the bathroom actually became a reality. After following them on Instagram and discovering not only were they insanely stylish, they were also a creative like me - a hyperpop/techno singer songwriter from Minnesota - I just knew we had to create something together. I reached out to them asking if they’d be willing to collaborate on a photoshoot with me and they agreed! They were particularly inspired by Fruits magazine and their really forced perspective neon vibrant shoots that utilized a lot of fish eye lenses.

I unfortunately don’t have a fish eye lens but I thought we could still figure out a way to get that neon Harajuku look by playing with styling and different urban backgrounds in Chicago’s Chinatown. We started in Ping Tom Park and then made our way towards Chinatown square, stopping whenever we spotted a setting that caught our eye. Since we didn’t have the fish eye lens we worked on interesting posing and model placement to give those different perspectives; standing inside plants, providing motion with the moving leaves of a willow tree, and shooting at an angle instead of having a traditional straight bottom were some of our methods. I’m a very moody photographer with a love of all things film and cinematography so I tried to capture them in ways that felt like storytelling more than just a simple posed image. Wether that be with their facial expressions or an empty city background, I wanted each image to invoke a feeling and a narrative in the viewers mind.

I’m usually a very moody and dark photographer when it comes to my editing style. I’m still very much moody but I think I broke away from my dark MO here and really tapped into what I could do with colors and vibrancy. These photos feel alive in ways I haven’t tapped into before. My partner said that I’m very good at making people glow in my photos, and I was quite confused when I first heard that. But looking at these images I think I’m beginning to understand what he meant. These photos have a glow about them, and no it’s not just the sun, I think there’s something somewhat effervescent coming from these images. Even though we didn’t have a super specific message in mind, I think we still managed to tell a story. I’m so curious what story comes to mind when others view these images. For me it’s unclear, but it feels like it has something to do with love.