Edition 2014

Martin Parr & Wassinklundgren

The Chinese Photobook

In the last decade there has been a major reappraisal of the role and status of the photobook within the history of photography. Revisionist histories of photography as recorded via the photobook have added enormously to our understanding of the medium’s culture, particularly in places that are often marginalized, such as Latin America and Africa. However, until now, only three Chinese photobooks have made it onto historians’ short lists. Yet China has a fascinating history of photobook publishing, and the exhibition, coproduced by the Rencontre d’Arles and Aperture, will reveal for the first time the richness and diversity of this heritage. The exhibition is based on a collection compiled by Martin Parr and Beijing and London-based Dutch photographer team WassinkLundgren. The Chinese Photobook will reveal much about China itself, and the country’s dramatic twists and turns during the last 100 years.

Exhibition curators: Martin Parr and WassinkLundgren.
Texts by Gu Zheng, Raymond Lum, Gerry Badger, Stephanie Tung, and Ruben Lundgren.Exhibition coproduced by Aperture Foundation and Les Rencontres d'Arles, with the support of Air France.
The Chinese Photobook has been made possible by a generous grant from the China Art Foundation.
The accompanying publication was made possible with additional contributions by Aperture supporters Celso Gonzalez-Falla and Sondra Gilman, Marina and Andrew E. Lewin and David Solo.
Wallpaper by Picto, Paris.
Framing by Circad, Paris.
Exhibition venue: Bureau DesLices.

  • Institutional partners

    • République Française
    • Région Provence Alpes Côté d'Azur
    • Département des Bouches du Rhône
    • Arles
    • Le Centre des monuments nationaux est heureux de soutenir les Rencontres de la Photographie d’Arles en accueillant des expositions dans l’abbaye de Montmajour
  • Main partners

    • Fondation LUMA
    • BMW
    • SNCF
    • Kering
  • Media partners

    • Arte
    • Lci
    • Konbini
    • Le Point
    • Madame Figaro
    • France Culture