An ongoing project involving the consumption of over 350 Filet-O-Fish burgers by China-born, UK-based artist Junhao Wu. Four years ago, while much of the world was still under pandemic restrictions, Wu was studying Contemporary Photography Practices and Philosophies at Central Saint Martins in London. During the lockdowns Wu imagined the day he could walk into a McDonald’s freely as the mark of a return to normalcy. On that day he ordered a Filet-O-Fish at random. Struck by the smoothness of the bun, he took a photo. Since then Wu has visited more than 150 McDonald’s restaurants, mainly in the UK and China. He always orders the Filet-O-Fish and always takes a photo from a fixed, top-down angle and uploads it to the Chinese social platoform Rednote (Xiaohongshu). As a student the choice was driven simply by economics and nostalgia. Born in a communist revolutionary town in southern China, McDonald’s was part of happy childhood memories. Wu could recall eating McDonald’s as a special event he could brag about to friends at school:
“As a child, of course, I didn’t know why that counted as a bragging rights. Maybe I get the answer now: we don’t really desire the experience of eating McDonald’s or the burgers themselves, but we desire what others desire (which can be shaped by public media). When I grew older, I dreamed of leaving my hometown, hoping that one day I can live in a city and eat McDonald’s every day…. It wasn’t until later that I finally realised eating a McDonald’s meal in a capital city and having a bowl of stir-fried noodles in my hometown are actually the same ordinary life experience. So, what exactly was the “better life” that I was constantly chasing?”
When Wu’s social media posts started to gain traction—and other people started to like and share the “smooth” and “perfect” bun trend including McDonald’s China joined in—Wu become uncomfortable. He was even offered a position in public relations with McDonald’s headquarters in China, which he declined. At the end of the day, Wu sees himself as “just a person leveraging social platforms (a device for photography), borrowing the global influence of McDonald’s to unfold a more personal mode of observation and storytelling.”
Junhao Wu participated in our 2025 Booooooom Art & Photo Book Award and made our shortlist. Click here to check out all of our current and upcoming open calls!
