Arcana:

(LI, ZENG). Li, Zeng, Weng Ling & Christopher Phillips. Hong Kong: MCCM Creations, 2006. First Edition. Oblong Folio. Cloth in Dust Jacket, Boxed. Photography Monograph. Near Fine/Near Fine. 236pp, profusely illustrated in color and b&w. Text in Chinese and English. "The speed of change and modernization in Mainland China over the past ten years has stunned the world. The staging of the 2008 Beijing Olympics has accelerated that momentum even more. City construction has become the order of the day, the demolition of decrepitated areas of old cities and the disappearance of the traditional urban landscape providing the most visible essence of transformation. In this context, urban development becomes the vocabulary of the architectural revolution, and photography has never been so powerful. Zeng Li uses photography to register the dramatic changes that have swept through historic neighborhoods in the capital's ongoing modernization campaign. Featuring a collection of one hundred and fifty works selected from over six thousand images taken between 1997 and 2006, this striking photography book provides a lasting visual record of everyday urban environments in Beijing and other cities in the throes of rapid change. The hutong dwellings, standardized apartment buildings, and bustling factories of earlier decades have given way to soaring residential towers and glittering shopping malls. "A China Chronicle" represents a collective memory of our time of change, and promises to become an important documentation of China's present heritage. Zeng Li is one of China's most acclaimed stage and costume designers. His collaborations with renowned Chinese film director Zhang Yimou in various films and theatre productions have won him world-wide recognition". A most handsome example of the 2006 first edition of this massive, lavishly produced survey (cited on pages 170-171 of Martin Parr and Gerry Badger's "The Photobook: A History Volume III" and 308-311 of Martin Parr and Wassink Lundgren's "The Chinese Photobook") in the publishers pictorial shipping carton, as issued. 9-889926-64-4 Inventory Number: 024405