From rubble, art and new life spring

Rather than abandoning their dwellings to the demolition crews, a group of residents is asserting themselves, finding themselves and finding a new home

As her daily routine begins, Xu Hui walks past the debris of demolished homes in a shantytown in Changde, Central China's Hunan province, her mission being to ask people living in the area whether they are willing to move away from it.

Xu expects that once generous compensation is dangled before them, her interviewees are likely to jump at the chance to move away from the area, notorious for its human congestion and filth. Yet running against that expectation is the fact that nearly all of the 200 families or so whose homes are due to be next on the chopping block have chosen to stay and buy the new houses that will be built in their place.