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This looks better irl – Exploring Cosplay Cons follows young people in this contemporary subculture, largely influenced by various Asian media and pop culture, full of community spirit, individuality and personal challenges, as they prepare for and attend cosplay conventions in Western Europe.

The work of Xiaoxiao Xu (CN/NL) focuses on people who relate to traditions and social conventions, but are still driven by individuality and personal desires. For years, her camera has focused on China, but she is now investigating the influence of Asian culture on Western society. In this case, cosplay, a form of performance art in which participants use costumes and accessories to portray a particular character. These are drawn from the world of comics, pop culture, anime, manga, video games, and films.

Over the past few years, Xu has attended various cosplay conventions and met many cosplayers. Their self-made costumes range from endearingly amateurish to lifelike, giving a personal interpretation to the characters they portray.

The cosplay community is very diverse. There is a great deal of mutual acceptance and therefore a large proportion of neurodivergent people. Is there perhaps an overlap with the social and emotional problems that young people are struggling with today? Are there deeper emotions hidden beneath these costumes? To investigate, Xu collected hundreds of screenshots from the cosplayers’ social media accounts. These screenshots form a recurring element in the publication, revealing much of their underlying feelings.

This looks better irl shows a timely subculture in which the interplay between the online and offline worlds, the astonishing costumes, and the youthful vulnerabilities are so delicately portrayed by Xu.

Xiaoxiao Xu (1984), born in Qingtian in southeastern China, moved to the Netherlands during her teenage years. This transition and living half of her life amid a different culture has broadened her perspective. Her photography, which navigates the delicate line between documentary and autonomous work, reflects her dual perspective as both insider and outsider.

Xu graduated cum laude from the Photo Academy Amsterdam and has since exhibited her work internationally in museums and festivals, with exhibitions at venues such as the Times Museum in Guangzhou, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum in Switzerland.

Xu has been recognized with numerous awards and nominations, including the Lucie Photo Book Prize and the Jimei × Arles Women Photographers Award. Her books have received critical acclaim, with Shooting the Tiger being honored among the Best Dutch Book Designs in 2023, and Aeronautics in the Backyard selected as one of the best photo books by De Volkskrant and The Guardian.