If anything stands out immediately in Antony Baxter’s new photographic study The Chinese in the 21st Century, it’s the distinction between people and place – a unique and intriguing phenomenon in a nation as bustling as China.
“I wanted to highlight the Chinese as a people, rather than a place,’’ the Moorabool resident says.
‘‘They’re an emerging power, but I want to look at what they do, how they do it and why.”
Baxter (pictured) is quick to highlight the difference between his work and a book of photos.
“It’s photojournalistic in nature, designed to be read through its photos,” he says. “It tells a story.”
It’s a story he’s become very familiar with, beginning in his 20s when he married a woman from an Asian background.
“But I’m still an outsider, and an outsider’s view of the Chinese is what I’ve set out to offer,” he says. “We began travelling to Asia to see my wife’s family, then in the mid-’80s we lived in Singapore for a few years.
‘‘I was a chartered accountant for many years and in the early ’90s I began travelling to China for work. I was astonished by the development of the place as it opened up.”
It’s a theme he’s explored during his ventures as a full-time photographer. He is based in Long Forest, where he has lived with his wife for 26 years.
The book doesn’t shy away from more sinister issues facing China, as well as its unique perplexities.
Baxter describes a photograph of a 300-metre bus queue, another of people queuing for train tickets which “look like a football crowd”, and a street with thousands of powerlines shrouded in smog.
“[The book] deals with realities, things that’ve become problematic.”
The Chinese in the 21st Century is available from major stockists including Dymocks and Readings. More details: wanderworld.com.au.
