The revolution will be photographed

More than three decades after the Cultural Revolution (1966-67) ended, Li Zhensheng has held his first-ever solo exhibition in a gallery in China. The photographer, who featured in the 2007 BBC documentary The Genius of Photography, is famous for the more than 100,000 pictures he took during this the tumultuous 10-year period in China's history. Entitled Winds and Clouds, the show at the Beaugeste Photo Gallery in Tianzifang features 28 works.

Disturbing incidents

Li started to shoot photos during the Cultural Revolution while he was a photographer and journalist at the Heilongjiang Daily, a newspaper based in Heilongjiang Province, northeastern China. Gradually, he began aware of the importance of recording what was happening which included pointing his lens at many disturbing incidents during the movement.

In December 1987, a series of photographs about the era entitled Let History Tell the Future, won a national photography competition, and his works were exhibited in the National Art Museum of China in Beijing the following year. He started to garner worldwide recognition in 2003 when his works were premiered in Paris at the start of an exhibition tour that took in the rest of Europe and North America.

In Chinese audience's eyes, Li's works are a reminder of troubled times, forcing them to recall this lost decade. Lots of the photos are of revolutionary rallies and various moments that encapsulate the headiness of the era. For example, some photos depict young people performing a "loyalty" dance to the revolution, while women train to join all female militia squads and students learn how to use farm tools. There is a curious shot of people getting ready for a swim by reading quotes from Chairman Mao's Little Red Book. Zhang Aiping, the then vice-premier of China, said to Li in 1988, that he was appreciated for "recording the history of the country and its people." And Gao Yunsong, a member of the Shanghai Photographer's Association, and a visitor to the Beaugeste Photo Gallery said: "Li's work captures historical moments, and we see a condensed history in his works."

French-born Chinese Jean Loh, the curator of the show, said he considers Li's works to be "masterpieces" as much for their artistic and aesthetic value, as for their historical relevance. "Li graduated from the photography department at the Changchun Film Institute," Jean told the Global Times. "So his photos often look like film posters," he said. "You see a story in every one of his works, and the hidden meaning behind them. And he also achieves a perfect balance between black and white, and yin and yang."

At the time Robert Pledge, president and co-founder of Contact Press Image, curated Li's Paris show he wrote: "He notably used them (photographs) for cinematic effect, the way a film director would, with reverse shots, often panning in sequences for a panoramic result, whether it be with traditional black-and-white 35 mm film or in the 21/4 inch square format which is difficult to fill in a balanced way."

An artist's eye

And in 2003 Alan Riding commented in The New York Times that Li's work "reflects the instinct of a journalist and the eye of an artist," adding that his photographs "reveal Mr Li's sense of composition, his understanding of lighting and his ability to convey emotion."

The only color photo in the exhibition is very reminiscent of an oil painting. The photo captures a climactic moment in the Chinese opera, The White-haired Girl, one of the eight model plays permitted to be performed during the Cultural Revolution. In the background, Li has captured the audience of some 50,000 people watching the outdoor show from a hillside. According to Jean, in order to include the audience in the photo, Li sneaked onto the stage at a crucial moment during the play, which led to threats of violence from some irate members of the rapt audience. "He is such a courageous person," said Jean. "He would risk his life, just for one shot or to get the best possible angle."

Date: Until April 21, 10 am to 6 pm (Saturdays and Sundays. Weekdays by appointment)

Venue: Beaugeste Photo Gallery 

比极影像

Address: Room 519, Bldg 5, Lane 210 Taikang Road 

泰康路210弄5号楼519室

Admission: Free

Call 6466-9012 for details