| This dissertation examines the significant transformations that took place in China's photographic field between 1976 and 1989, and reconstructs a historical narrative of said changes.;Approaching photography as a cultural product, the dissertation identifies two types of photography positionings: the official and the unofficial. "Official photography" is one endorsed by the Communist Party and the State, and is represented by a variety of cultural institutions and press organizations. "Unofficial photography" is practiced by individuals and various private groups. The dissertation reveals that the tension between these two categories of photography became the force that moved Chinese photography toward diversification both in content and in form between the two bookend dates.;Drawing information from a wide range of primary and secondary sources, including personal archives, photography newspapers and magazines, trade publications and yearbooks, photographs and memoires, in-depth oral history interviews, this dissertation follows a general chronological order and highlights within the examined timeframe a number of key events, issues, and trends in photography practices. In this process, the dissertation invokes a variety of photojournalists, fine art photographers, picture editors, cultural officials, exhibition organizers and book publishers. It also analyzes a selected number of photographs that are seen as representative of that era. |
