China

by Rae Yang

A stirring tribute to china's land and people, and a lasting vision of the country within.

To commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Aperture is

publishing Imaging China. This magnificent volume unfolds a series of in-depth portfolios by twenty of

the most important Chinese and Western photographers of the era, conveying the extent of their

involvement in politics, culture, and everyday life. Together with texts by leading thinkers, writings by

the photographers, and selections of ancient and modern poetry, this collection offers profound insight

into a country that has been closed to the West for more than half of its existence.

Drawn to China by its dramatic upheavals and its rich cultural legacy, the world's greatest photographers

offer thrilling proof of the power of photography to explore-and convey-the human experience. From

France's Henri Cartier-Bresson, present at the creation of the Republic in 1949, to China's Liu Heung

Shing, who chronicled a society in transition following the death of Mao Tse-tung, to Wu Jialin and

Stuart Franklin working today, the image makers represented here have created visions of China as broad

and diverse as the country and its society. Imaging China is an extraordinary visual exploration of an

extraordinary place and time.

199 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Rae Yang is an Associate Professor of East Asian Studies at Dickinson College. Her fields of specialization are pre-modern and modern Chinese fiction with emphasis on psychoanalytic criticism. Her research and teaching interests include Chinese language teaching, Chinese folklore, comparative literature, and autobiographical writing.