# 19 Today's picture 090215

Österlen, Skåne, Sweden ©Ingrid Booz Morejohn

I'm longing for SUMMER!

Photography: Old China New China, Great Wall at Badaling

Above: Great Wall at Badaling, ca 60-70 km NW of Beijing, ca 1877. Photograph attributed to Thomas Childe. Source: "The Face of China As Seen by Photographers & Travelers 1860-1912, p.22"/flickr.com/©etherflyer's photostream

Below: Badaling Great Wall, March 3, 2005 ©Ingrid Booz Morejohn

Photography: Old China New China, Temple of Heaven

Above: Temple of Heaven, Beijing, ca 1911-15. Photographer unknown. Source "Imperial China, p. 122"/flickr.com/©etherflyer's photostream.

Below: Temple of Heaven, 2007 ©Ingrid Booz Morejohn

Early China photographer: John Thomson

Cantonese woman 1868-72, captioned "Woman of the working class", John Thomson

John Thomson (1837-1921) was an amazing Scottish photographer that we can thank for a treasure of excellent photographs from a very early era of China photography. He made numerous trips through large parts of the mainland, as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan during the period 1868-1872. He was also a pioneer of photojournalism, producing images of excellent quality, emotion and range.

From Wikipedia:

Thomson's travels in China were often perilous, as he visited remote, almost unpopulated regions far inland. Most of the people he encountered had never seen a Westerner or camera before. His expeditions were also especially challenging because he had to transport his bulky wooden camera, many large, fragile glass plates, and potentially explosive chemicals. He photographed in a wide variety of conditions and often had to improvise because chemicals were difficult to acquire. His subject matter varied enormously: from humble beggars and street people to Mandarins, Princes and senior government officials; from remote monasteries to Imperial Palaces; from simple rural villages to magnificent landscapes.

Life Magazine Image Archive: Sichuan and Chongqing

Bombing Of Chungking
Smoke & debris rising from the city, a result of savage air bombing by the Japanese.
Location: Chungking, China
Date taken: July 1941
Photographer: Carl Mydans


China-Japan War
A portion of Chungking where people are rebuiliding afer Japanese air raids destroyed the area.
Location: Chungking, China
Date taken: February 1941
Photographer: Carl Mydans


Old farmers relaxing at teahouse after market day.
Location: Szechuan, China
Date taken: 1944
Photographer: Carl Mydans


A view of a typical Szechuan farm.
Location: Paoki, China
Date taken: 1941
Photographer: Carl Mydans


Lolo Tribesmen from Szechuan Border Region appear in native dress at First meeting of National Assembly.
Location: China
Date taken: April 1948
Photographer: Jack Birns


Volunteer fire brigade in market village in central Szechuan province.
Location: Lung Chuan-I, China
Date taken: 1941
Photographer: Carl Mydans

The above images are just a small selection from the enormous Life Magazine image archive hosted on Google. All are taken before 1949. The Sichuan material is, of course, heavy on Chongqing as it was the provisional capital of the Nationalist Government during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The pictures from Chongqing before, after and during numerous bombings are particularly horrific but also very enlightening if you have witnessed firsthand what Chongqing looks like today. Unfortunately other Sichuan postings are a little scarce, but some of the ones you'll find are still quintessential Sichuan scenes: relaxing at a teahouse, countryside villages etc. Image captions use the old Wade-Giles spelling (Chungking and not Chongqing) and some derogatory terms like "Lolo" as seen above. China as a whole is represented by only 200 images, but there are other keywords that bring up more images: Taiwan, Tibet, Hong Kong, Sinkiang, Manchuria, Yangtse River, Burma Road etc etc. Keyword creativity is a must! Link to archive here. Footnote: Oh, China! What has happened to you?