© John Lee / Offset

In July 2006, photographer John Lee was invited by the tourism bureau of Qinghai to visit the Yushu Horse Racing Festival. The annual event takes place near the Tibetan border on verdant grassland, along which visitors set up tents and camp. As Tibet’s largest horse festival, it drew over ten thousand visitors for a week of horse and yak racing, archery, and traditional Tibetan dancing, singing, and fashion shows.

Lee met this young woman while walking the festival grounds in the golden light of evening. He was drawn to her tough-girl attitude and the way her lollipop mimicked a cigarette. He approached her and captured two portraits before moving through the remainder of the crowd as they wandered in and out of their tents and the sun slowly set.

This photo and many others from Lee’s portfolio are available through Offset, a new curated collection of high-end commercial and editorial photography and illustration from award-winning artists around the world. Offset is an exclusive category channel partner on Feature Shoot.