Radiant Reflections: Delving into the Artistry of Luo Bonian’s Photography

It was at the Tate Modern where Jiawen Hu encountered a photograph by Luo Bonian, a Chinese photographer relatively unknown to the wider audience. She observed that the piece originated from the Three Shadows Photography Art Center, an artistic institution established in Beijing in 2007.

At that moment, Jiawen was completing her academic pursuits. She opted to apply to the center and was employed shortly thereafter. Now serving as the deputy director of the institution, she orchestrated the exhibition “Glinting Light: An Exploration of Luo Bonian’s Photography”—the first-ever showcase in China dedicated to Luo Bonian’s artistry. This initiative holds substantial importance not only for Jiawen but also for the cultural and historical landscape of China.

Luo Bonian’s oeuvre provides a profound account of the society, artistry, and culture of the Republic of China. As highlighted by Stéphanie H. Tung, an authority in Chinese photography: “An archive of this magnitude—nearly 300 vintage silver gelatin prints and an even larger quantity of negatives from the time—produced by a singular photographer in early 20th-century China is exceedingly rare. After the Cultural Revolution of 1949, most photographic materials were deemed bourgeois and either destroyed or concealed.” Owing to the efforts of Luo’s great-grandson, Jin Youming—a banker and enthusiastic photographer—the archives were unearthed and disseminated, finally acknowledging Luo Bonian’s groundbreaking contributions.

The exhibition, hosted on the first floor of the Three Shadows Photography Art Center in Xiamen, showcases the key milestones of Luo’s career from 1930 to 1940. It delves into his preferred themes: landscapes, collages, and still lifes. At first glance, these subjects may seem ordinary, yet they establish a connection between Luo and Chinese pictorial traditions as well as Western modernist avant-garde movements—contexts that became entirely taboo during the Cultural Revolution. The display also features personal albums, magazines, vintage prints, and the sleeves Luo utilized for his negatives, providing a close-up insight into his creative method.

Born in 1911 to a family of local officials in Hangzhou, Luo began his career as an accountant at the Commercial Bank of China, a thriving industry at the time. That same year, he discovered the art of photography, an expensive pastime favored by the educated and affluent middle classes.

Luo’s work responsibilities led him to cities such as Beijing, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Hong Kong, and Shanghai as he moved between branches of the Bank of China. The cosmopolitan environments of Shanghai and Hong Kong introduced him to international publications like Das Deutsche Lichtbild and Pictorial Photographers of America, which had a significant impact on his style, imparting a unique and avant-garde flair for the period.

In his leisure time, Luo immersed himself in photography, quickly connecting with circles of amateur photographers. His works were featured in publications such as Fei Ying, Chinese Photography Magazine, and Kodak Magazine. In 1937, Luo presented his most notable exhibition, Friendship, in Shanghai. The exhibition’s inscription was penned by the esteemed writer Yu Dafu, reflecting Luo’s relationships with literary, artistic, and political figures of Republican China.

Above all, Luo had a passion for experimentation. His abstract compositions and still lifes reveal a fascination with form, shadow, and illumination. His collages reimagine everyday components such as plant veins, bricks, and iron grids—details carefully curated from ordinary life. The exhibition explains:
“His technique was ingenious, comparable to employing a kaleidoscope. Luo would print four photographs on both sides of a single negative, extract key focal points, and crop them into eight equilateral triangles. These triangles, astutely paired and symmetrically aligned, formed scenes that were both peculiar and balanced. His still lifes resonate with the light and shadow explorations of German photographer Albert Renger-Patzsch from the New Objectivity movement, creating a new visual realm in contemporary art.”

Despite the onset of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Luo maintained his photographic pursuits, concentrating on still lifes and experimental indoor works. Noteworthy examples include a halved cabbage and a statue of an embracing couple resting on a sideboard. However, following the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Luo ceased photographing due to insufficient resources and political shifts. He retreated to Hangzhou, out of the public eye and largely insulated from the violence and political purges of the Cultural Revolution. Remarkably, he managed to safeguard his prints and negatives by concealing them in boxes and albums.

This extraordinary exhibition chronicles the journey of an individual whose talent, perseverance, and commitment convey a message of hope and creative rejuvenation to all who encounter his work.

Jimei x Arles International Photo Festival 2024

Jimei Art Centre
Building 12, Xinglinwan Business Control, Jimei District, Xiamen
www.rencontres-arles.com/fr/jimei-x-arles-2024international-photo-festival

Three Shadows Photography Art Centre
3F, Building 2, Xinglinwan Business
Control, Jimei District, Xiamen
www.threeshadows.cn/cn