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Eve Arnold In China
14/11/07
In 1979, American photo-journalist Eve Arnold (born 1912) became one of the first Western photographers to enter China. The extraordinary body of work that resulted was shown at the Brooklyn Museum, New York in 1980 but has never been the focus of an exhibition in the UK. Asia House is proud to be collaborating with Magnum Photos to show an exhibition of 40 of these photographs brought together for the first time in London.
Eve Arnold writes, “In China, 1979 marked a period of easing towards the West. For the first time after almost a generation of secrecy, the Chinese government was taking its own people (and the outside world) into its confidence. The official organ, the Xinhua News Agency, was reporting basic information and statistics on employment, the national income, the budget, the harvest, industrial quotas, consumer goods, and much else that had been a mystery before. To get people moving, economic incentives were to replace ideology. The Chinese were taking a heavy gamble that they could become a world power by the year 2000. It was a time of openness that made my work a joy.”
Horse Training, Inner Mongolia, by Eve Arnold © Asia House
Eve Arnold was the first female member of Magnum Photos, joining in 1955. Perhaps best-known for her work with film star Marilyn Monroe, with whom she had a long-standing working relationship, Arnold has also spent considerable time throughout a long career recording her extensive travels around the world. She was elected Master Photographer by the New York International Center of Photography (ICP) in 1995, the highest accolade for a photographer. She came to Britain in 1962 and has been based in the UK ever since.
Katriana Hazell, Cultural Director of Asia House writes “In 2008 an international focus will turn with greater attention to China, with the forthcoming Beijing Olympics coupled with the country’s continuing economic and artistic explosion. Eve Arnold’s pictures are some of the abiding images of our age and it is timely to look again at these photographs of China and note how our perceptions of this fascinating country have shifted and evolved in the intervening three decades”.
A Magnum Photos exhibition
Song and Dance Troupe, by Eve Arnold © Asia House
Monday to Saturdays 10am to 6pm, closed Sundays
Admittance £2, free to Asia House members and concessions
Note: Asia House Gallery will be closed from Monday 24 December, re-opening on Monday 7 January 2008.
www.asiahouse.org
For further information and images, contact:
Julie Brixey-Williams or Sophie Persson at Asia House – Tel: 020 7307 5454
[email protected] / [email protected]
Asia House
Asia House, was established in 1997, but only moved to its home in New Cavendish Street in 2005. It aims to lead the way in promoting a deeper understanding of diverse Asian cultures and economies, hosting around 125 lively artistic and corporate annual events. Each year, its artistic programme unites emerging and established Asian artists and curators with four major exhibitions, a comprehensive education programme, and a variety of lectures and panel discussions.
www.asiahouse.org
Events Programme
All events take place at Asia House.
Booking recommended – 020 7307 5454
Creative workshop day for all ages
Take part in a range of creative and artistic activities inspired by the exhibition.
Children £4, Adults £2
Saturday 17 November, 11.30am-1.00pm / 2.00-3.30pm
A Journalist’s View Of China, 1978-2003
John Gittings reported from China for over 30 years for The Guardian, from the political struggles of the Cultural Revolution to the consumer society of the present day. In this talk he will describe the huge changes that he witnessed not only in Beijing, but in towns and villages from Shandong to Tibet.
Asia House Members and concs £4, Non-members £7
Thursday 29 November, Doors 6.30pm Lecture 6.45-7.45pm
Eve Arnold writes, “In China, 1979 marked a period of easing towards the West. For the first time after almost a generation of secrecy, the Chinese government was taking its own people (and the outside world) into its confidence. The official organ, the Xinhua News Agency, was reporting basic information and statistics on employment, the national income, the budget, the harvest, industrial quotas, consumer goods, and much else that had been a mystery before. To get people moving, economic incentives were to replace ideology. The Chinese were taking a heavy gamble that they could become a world power by the year 2000. It was a time of openness that made my work a joy.”
Horse Training, Inner Mongolia, by Eve Arnold © Asia House
Eve Arnold was the first female member of Magnum Photos, joining in 1955. Perhaps best-known for her work with film star Marilyn Monroe, with whom she had a long-standing working relationship, Arnold has also spent considerable time throughout a long career recording her extensive travels around the world. She was elected Master Photographer by the New York International Center of Photography (ICP) in 1995, the highest accolade for a photographer. She came to Britain in 1962 and has been based in the UK ever since.
Katriana Hazell, Cultural Director of Asia House writes “In 2008 an international focus will turn with greater attention to China, with the forthcoming Beijing Olympics coupled with the country’s continuing economic and artistic explosion. Eve Arnold’s pictures are some of the abiding images of our age and it is timely to look again at these photographs of China and note how our perceptions of this fascinating country have shifted and evolved in the intervening three decades”.
A Magnum Photos exhibition
Song and Dance Troupe, by Eve Arnold © Asia House
Monday to Saturdays 10am to 6pm, closed Sundays
Admittance £2, free to Asia House members and concessions
Note: Asia House Gallery will be closed from Monday 24 December, re-opening on Monday 7 January 2008.
www.asiahouse.org
For further information and images, contact:
Julie Brixey-Williams or Sophie Persson at Asia House – Tel: 020 7307 5454
[email protected] / [email protected]
Asia House
Asia House, was established in 1997, but only moved to its home in New Cavendish Street in 2005. It aims to lead the way in promoting a deeper understanding of diverse Asian cultures and economies, hosting around 125 lively artistic and corporate annual events. Each year, its artistic programme unites emerging and established Asian artists and curators with four major exhibitions, a comprehensive education programme, and a variety of lectures and panel discussions.
www.asiahouse.org
Events Programme
All events take place at Asia House.
Booking recommended – 020 7307 5454
Creative workshop day for all ages
Take part in a range of creative and artistic activities inspired by the exhibition.
Children £4, Adults £2
Saturday 17 November, 11.30am-1.00pm / 2.00-3.30pm
A Journalist’s View Of China, 1978-2003
John Gittings reported from China for over 30 years for The Guardian, from the political struggles of the Cultural Revolution to the consumer society of the present day. In this talk he will describe the huge changes that he witnessed not only in Beijing, but in towns and villages from Shandong to Tibet.
Asia House Members and concs £4, Non-members £7
Thursday 29 November, Doors 6.30pm Lecture 6.45-7.45pm
