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Photographer reveals the secret lives of Hong Kong's market cats in captivating series

Love or hate them, there's no denying that cats rule the Internet. With their bold personalities and unbound curiosity, they find themselves in all kinds of situations.

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Butcher in red apron stands outside market stall hung with raw pork carcasses under neon signage, with a cat sitting nearby on the ground

With that in mind, the latest series by Dutch photographer, Marcel Heijnen, captures the lives of Hong Kong's Market Cats – a sequel to his popular collection Hong Kong Shop Cats.

Taking a slightly darker angle than his previous work, Hong Kong Market Cats takes us to areas of the city few will associate with caring relationships between humans and felines. However, Heijnen’s photos reveal the cats he found lurking in markets are very much at home in their surroundings and are well taken care of – valued for their companionship and ability to keep spaces mice-free.

Marcel said: “Like most good things in life, the Hong Kong Market Cats series was a happy accident, or perhaps more of a by-product of something larger. While working on my Hong Kong Shop Cats series I initially made no distinction between shops and markets while capturing these retail felines. But the collection grew so rapidly that it made total sense to separate Market Cats into its own book, to be released a bit later than Shop Cats.

"Again, the series is as much about the context as it is about the beautiful animal. The backdrop takes centre stage. And while there are lots of similarities with the Shop Cats series, there are distinctive differences as well. For starters, the markets are more chaotic and less clean than the shops. Boxes, crates, grimy walls, forklifts, pallets. More human activity and perhaps a bit less of a connection between the owner and the cat. Markets are busy places in which fresh goods move rapidly. They make for more dynamic subject matter."

To discover more, visit www.marcelheijnen.com.

All images courtesy of Marcel Heijnen

Photographer Marcel Heijnen crouches among cardboard boxes holding an orange tabby cat in a Hong Kong market setting
Industrial kitchen space with white tiled walls, brass pipes, cooling fans, metal storage containers and equipment typical of a Hong Kong market kitchen
Black cat with yellow eyes sitting among stacked black tyres with yellow markings in a Hong Kong market
Weathered utility room with grimy concrete walls, a basic sink, red bucket, broom and a grey cat sitting on the floor amongst cleaning supplies
Tabby cat with blue collar peering out from between green and white striped fabric or material in a Hong Kong market
A tabby cat and grey dog rest outside a traditional Hong Kong market stall with red Chinese characters on signage and wooden furniture visible inside the narrow shop front.
Man resting in a red chair amongst baskets and laundry in a cluttered Hong Kong market stall, surrounded by hanging clothes and storage crates
Man working at a market stall illuminated by neon pink lighting, with a tabby cat sitting on a shelf behind him among tools and supplies
Two tabby cats sit together beneath calendars and notices pinned to a weathered concrete wall in a Hong Kong market
Elderly market stallholder hands wrapped items to a customer while a tabby cat sits beneath their stall in a Hong Kong market
Overhead view of a Hong Kong market stall with tiled floor, cardboard boxes, a person in blue shirt, and metal shelving units containing goods and equipment
Orange and white cat lounging on white fabric beside stacked woven baskets tied with yellow rope in a Hong Kong market
Tabby cat standing among hanging meat and red plastic bags in a Hong Kong market butcher's shop
Woman crouching among stacked cardboard boxes and fruit crates in a market storage area, with a cat resting nearby on the floor
A shirtless man stands outside a meat stall in a Hong Kong market where carcasses hang from hooks and a cat sits beneath the counter
Fluffy tabby and white cat sitting on a wet floor in a narrow alleyway, framed by metal security gates and brick walls
A tabby cat sits on the pavement in front of a market stall displaying flowers and produce, with Chinese signage and pink lanterns overhead
Weathered wooden pallets and metal trays stacked in a Hong Kong market warehouse, with a cat visible between the wooden slats
Tabby and white cat perched on a shelf among industrial pipes and worn cream-coloured tiled walls in a Hong Kong market
Weathered concrete wall beside a dark metal doorway opening onto an interior space with metal framework and sandy ground, from Marcel Heijnen's Hong Kong Market Cats series
A person stands inside a narrow Hong Kong market stall with Chinese signage, surrounded by storage boxes, tools and equipment, with fluorescent lighting overhead
A man in a white shirt stretches dough at a market stall surrounded by hanging t-shirts and food displays in a busy Hong Kong market
A tabby cat sits inside a Hong Kong market stall with Chinese characters on the signage, surrounded by stacked boxes of merchandise and hanging lamps in an industrial warehouse setting
Person wearing pink wellington boots standing in a Hong Kong market with a tabby cat between their legs
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