Rockbund Art Museum 上海外滩美术馆

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, the Rockbund Art Museum is pleased to present 100 Years of the Bund in KhekDhangKe, casting light on the changing landscape and significant moments along the Bund area and probing into the evolution of urban cultures through comparisons between the past and the present. Curated by Xu Ming, founder of Urban Archaeology, an independent research organization with a focus on the history of Shanghai, the exhibition features 37 groups of panoramic photographs, wet plate photographs, panoramic illustrated posters and landscape paintings of the Bund area from the 19th to the 20th centuries. Being an origin of the drastic development of modern Shanghai, an important destination for both tourists and local citizens, a prominent container for public and private memories, the Bund area in itself epitomizes the centuries-long vicissitudes of the city. Through the old images of the area, we intend to build a channel leading people to travel back to the Bund of the old times, to have an intuitive picture of the glories of the Bund and imbue new verve into the memories of the city.

As a commissioned collaborator of this long-term project initiated by RAM, Xu Ming intends to trace the historical origin and development of the Bund area by integrating historical materials of different periods. Probing into visual and textual materials of the area of the past two centuries, the curator intends to present a panoramic picture of the Bund around the 19th century. Highlights of the exhibition include a panoramic photo of the Bund by Kung Tai Photography Studio and in-depth analysis of the “architecture gallery” along the Bund during that time, including 33 historical buildings such as the Shanghai Club, former French Consulate, former Central Hotel, former British Consulate and HSBC Building. In the glass window space of RAM Station, display panoramic illustrated posters and landscape painting of the 19th century are on view, casting light on the business and natural landscapes of the Bund. Through the images showing the area in different times and from different perspectives, a process of constant integration of eastern and western cultures could be perceived. In addition, a catalogue entitled THE BUND 1882 is published accompanying the exhibition. Featuring over 60 pieces of precious wet plate photographs and hi-res version of the panoramic pictures of the Bund taken by Kung Tai, the catalogue presents a holistic picture of the Bund during mid and late 19th century. In this catalogue, an in-depth introduction of all the 44 historical building along the Bund during that period is presented, which makes it the only photographic catalogue that has made a systematic review of the Bund in the 19th century.

According to the curator, “As early as the 1860s, Chinese photographers began to enhance their skills by actively learning from commercial photographers from the west. Ever since then, the constantly changing and developing landscape of the Bund was preserved through their lens. Within less than four decades, the bund area had already taken shape of a modern city since Shanghai was opened to foreign trade in 1843. The now most known ‘architecture gallery’ of the country emerged from the land where used to be a waterfront covered by reeds, demonstrating its potential to compete with and even transcend big cities in Europe in a very early stage.”

As an epitome of the past, these precious old photos re-present the history in a visually intuitive way, which in turn imbues new verve into the photos. During the exhibition, the museum will present two tea parties at RAM Station, aiming to further the discussions on the study of urban archaeology and the cultural and historical origins of the classical architecture along the Bund.

值建党百年之际，上海外滩美术馆将带来全新的摄影展“客堂间里的百年外滩”，以摄影作品的展示和文献梳理，展现外滩区域的变化与重要节点。

此次展览由独立上海史研究团体“城市考古”创始人徐明策划，汇集了19世纪和20世纪外滩地区的全景照片, 湿版照片，全景插画海报以及19世纪外滩风景画等37组作品。作为近代上海发展的起点，本地居民或游客的日常生活的载体，公共记忆和个人记忆的容器，百年来外滩地区诉说着上海的历久弥新。此次我们将邀请大家从斑驳的昔日建筑旧影中穿越回百年前的外滩，感受外滩往事，唤醒城市记忆。

作为由外滩美术馆发起的长期项目客堂间的委约合作者，策展人徐明通过定期的历史资料研究整合，追溯外滩区域的历史起源与发展，通过梳理外滩地区的百年前的历史影像资料和文献，展示19世纪前后外滩地区的全景风貌，本次展览的重点是公泰照相馆拍摄于1882年的外滩全景以及那个时期外滩建筑的具体解析，完整呈现了上海总会，法国领事馆，中央旅社，英国领事馆，汇丰银行大楼以及众多不为人所熟悉的33栋历史建筑；空间站的玻璃橱窗还将展示外滩主要商业街区的全景插画海报, 19世纪外滩风景画等历史影像资料。这些作品揭秘了不同时间节点外滩地区的历史人文街区的影像，展现了东西方文化不断交融的历程。此外，本次还将推出展览画册《THE BUND 1882》, 其展示了60余张珍贵的湿板摄影作品，以1882年公泰照相馆拍摄的高清外滩全景为基础，完整展现了19世纪中晚期的外滩全貌, 囊括了那一时期外滩全部的44栋历史建筑以及详细的变迁过程. 是目前唯一系统性整理19世纪外滩的影像资料画册。

正如徐明所说：“早在19世纪60年代，中国摄影师们已经开始积极向西方商业摄影师学习摄影技术，此后漫长的时间里，借由他们的作品，外滩不停更迭的影像得以保留。在摄影师的镜头里, 不难发现自1843开埠之后的40年间外滩片区已初具现代城市的雏形，从芦苇滩上拔地而起，早早显现出了比肩欧洲各大城市的潜力。”

这些珍贵的旧照在镌刻历史的痕迹的同时，让历史变得可以观看，可以辨认，仅此一重意义，便又可以使这些照片，焕发新的生命力。在此次展览期间，上海外滩美术馆将于RAM空间站举办两场线下茶话会，旨在进一步研究城市考古有关的议题，探讨外滩建筑群背后的城市文化和历史起源。