Sunday, July 25, 2010

Photos of Yunnan and Sichuan in the 1930s by Zhuang Xueben

If you thought Joseph Rock was a good photographer of Kham in the 1930s, wait until you see these photographs. I have just come across this source of some superb pictures of western Sichuan and Yunnan from the 1930s and 1940s. They are by a Shanghai photographer, Zhang Xueben (1909-1984). He has instantly become one of my favourite China photographers, his images rank alongside those of Hedda Morrison in quality and in the way they capture the natural feel of the place and people.
You can see more at the website of the Sichuan Alpine Ecology Study Center:
http://www.tourtibet.com/Html/PhotoGallery/OldPicture/

There is some more background info on Zhang here.

(By the way, this photo is entitled: "Woman of Naxi People, Yang Ming County, Yunnan Province, 1934")

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Hi guy! I like you blog. I just found out about Joseph Rock this evening watching a PBS show. I also found out 3 yrs ago that I'm Austrian so I'm really interested in this man plus I love all things Chinese! I hope you find a publisher!