Bosshard: Chinese Photojournalism in the 1930s
Swiss photojournalist Walter Bosshard did the remarkable in China during the 1930s. Not only was he the first to interview Mao Zedong, he also photographed and met the nationalist leaders as well as the Japanese during the Sino-Japanese war.
His photos, currently exhibited at the University Museum and Art Gallery (UMAG), show a young Mao and shots of idyllic village life, but it is pictures of everyday people that are the most striking as they show a country in transformation with skill and artistry.
“Certainly for China or this part of the world, Bosshard’s photography is completely unique because he had so much access and he lived here for so long,“ said Florian Knothe, Director of UMAG.
“Other western journalists came in but typically for short term assignments,” he said.
“It’s quite an interesting history lesson. You see the different parts of the country, the different years, and the things developing, and the photo was taken by a neutral person, not someone who was commissioned by any of the parties,” he said.
Bosshard in China: Documenting Social Change in the 1930s is on display until August 5. It is the first time that a complete set of Bosshard’s work is being exhibited in Asia. As tensions flare between the mainland and Taiwan, Bosshard’s images recall a time when the two parties had put aside their differences for the greater good.
Starting from the steppes of Mongolia, Bosshard captured Kunming, Chongqing, Nanjing and Nankou with an unbiased lens. The Swiss was equally at ease with the communists, the nationalists and even the Japanese.
Bosshard met Mao in Yan’an and the two talked for hours touching on topics such as economic and military policies. Becoming the first European journalist to interview Mao, the meeting marked a turning point in Bosshard’s career.
So why has it taken so long for his work to be showcased in China? Partly, it was because photos of Chiang Kai Shek remained controversial not just on the mainland but also in Taiwan.
“There were two exhibitions in mainland China before, one in Shanghai but that one was smaller and some of the topics could not be shown there,” said Knothe.
“Chiangkai Shek, also Mao Zedong actually, and religious topics were not included,” he added.
“People who came to the tour [in Hong Kong].. thought it was particularly important for China to collect all of his photographs,” said Knothe.
“As a national archive, it would be fascinating for China to include that,” he said.
For the first time ever, the full set of Bosshard’s unprecedented work in China has now returned to the country where it all began.
The Waler Bosshard Exhibition will be held between 27 April 2018 to 5 August 2018 at the Hong Kong University Museum and Gallery.
HKU Gallery Press Release: https://www.umag.hku.hk/upload/news/attachment/fdf9b91bac251834c5aea6c7f8d71b34.pdf