The familiarity conveyed by Song Chao’s portraits comes from his own
experience working in the coal mines of Shandong province. Song
says he began photographing his miner friends and colleagues to
show that, “the Chinese miner is not a cold, coal-mining machine—
there are rich and delicate emotions and unique characters beneath
each rough appearance.”

Song’s work also illustrates the complex relationship society has with
fossil fuels. “As China has developed rapidly over the past several
decades, it has done so on the back of the coal industry and the
workers who spend their days, and risk their lives, toiling in the mines.
But, as we all know, coal is a nonrenewable resource, and people
across China have grown worried about the potential ecological
impact of our reliance on it,” the artist says.