Fake magazines tackle real issues

The first-generation Chinese immigrants "are humble and hardy" and most of them ran family businesses like supermarkets or corner stores. The younger generation Chinese in Madrid meanwhile "are much better educated and more fashion-conscious" and engage in a wider range of professions like law, art, and business, Carrasco said.

"In short, all models in my fake magazine are ordinary second-generation Chinese immigrants from different walks of life," said Carrasco.

But the artist confessed it was hard at first to find models for her project.

In January 2018, Carrasco went downtown and saw a great number of Chinese people celebrating the upcoming Spring Festival. She noticed a young female director directing a crew, which was in the middle of filming a video.

She approached the director, introducing herself and her project to the Chinese girl who in turn introduced her to more young Chinese in the city. Carrasco also recruited young Chinese "models" via advertisements posted on social media.

The artist then treated her models just like celebrities to be featured in high-brow magazines, interviewing them, photographing them and ultimately bringing the Chinese millennials on the margins of Madrid to the cover and front pages of her magazine.

The magazine aims to "make visible and update the image of the Chinese community in my country," said Carrasco.