3030 New Photography In China, by John Millichap

3030 New Photography In China, by John Millichap

Freelance journalist and founder of 3030 Press (an organization set up to produce high-quality English-language books about all aspects of contemporary creativity in China), John Millichap worked with professor of photography Gu Zheng and contemporary artist/author Ou Ning to bring 30 of China's contemporary photographers under 30 together in an energetic photographic survey titled “3030: New Photography in China.” All artists represented in the book are using photography as a medium to speak the language of the social and economic transformation that has occurred over the past few decades. “Together these works can be seen as an attempt to highlight the possibilities and anxieties of life in modern China, as well as a powerful new sense of creative identity,” explains Millichap. Each image in the book is representative of a new generation in China whose, according to Gu Zheng's theory of Chinese personal photography, “sensibilities and character are utterly distinct and for whom the power of the image is paramount.” Chinese society has undergone a major change marked by the embrace of consumerism since the mid-1990s and one glance at any given image in Millichap's book lets the viewer feel that behind the photograph lies a story affected by such transformation. Within the pages exists scenes of love and want, distraction and politics, but most apparent are the thrilling suggestions of a new China brimming with individuals whose voices ring loudly and uniquely through the photographic lens. We're especially fond of Cao Fei's series featuring Star Wars clad figures in everyday China scenes.

Whitney Rosenberg