Marc Riboud in China

Marc Riboud's images are a window on a world in transition as China reinvents itself with dizzying speed--his is as revealing a window as we are likely to find. The contrast between China old and new, as interpreted by Riboud, is an often startling one that cannot help but inform and intrigue. He specializes in the juxtaposition of images, perhaps none are more jarring than his photograph of a poor man lugging a sack of belongings down a trash-littered back street while a pair of chubby-cheeked babies glance over his shoulder in a nearby poster and a porno actress bares her chest in an ad overhead. Riboud's home is France, his territory is the world from Vietnam to Iran, but his heart and soul are apparently in the China he has covered from the days of Mao's revolution through the erosion of Communism to the country's modern economic upheaval.

Renowned French photographer Riboud (Angkor: The Serenity of Buddhism, LJ 10/01/93) has been regularly recording the profound changes in China since 1956. In this companion catalog for an exhibition on display in Paris and New York, Riboud notes that "the East that we loved for its permanences is suddenly turning into a caricature of the West." Indeed, this collection portrays not only the striking contrasts between the old and new China but observes remnants of the old society adrift in the new. Generally showing either cityscapes or villagers engaged in daily activities, the 150 black-and-white images move from the tradition-bound Old World culture to scenes contrasting that world with Mao's China to the emergence of a modern, consumer-driven society carrying vestiges of the past. Along with the stirring photographs, Riboud's witty, personal captions and a reflective preface by French journalist Jean David capture the spirit of a resilient people and the soul of a rapidly changing nation. Highly recommended.

Joan Levin, MLS, Chicago