Maggs Bros.

T. C. Lau (1893-1974) was born in Canton (Guangzhou). He studied dentistry in America (University of Pennsylvania) and upon his return to Canton he opened a popular dental clinic where he famously pulled one of Sun Yat-sen’s teeth. He was a co-founder of the Guangzhou Jingshi Photography club, which followed the popular pictorialist style making bromoil prints. In 1931 they organised a photographic trip to Guilin and Yangshuo, and their work was exhibited in Shanghai to great acclaim. The present book was published as a result of the exhibition.

“Photography with me is a hobby. I do not take photographs for the purpose of having them published, or to please others. It is done to please myself. Whenever there is something in nature that appears to me to be beautiful, I want to make a record of it by the medium of photography, just as a hunter shoots, when he sees game before him. However, what I shoot with my camera may live with me long after the hunter’s game is forgotten.” (Preface).

There appears to have been an issue with the English titles and all the English captions below the photographs have been struck out. A note below the ‘Titles of Pictures’ states: “The correct titles of the pictures in this book were handed to us, when the book was already in the press. The author desires, however, that titles given by himself, instead of those that have already been printed be given to the pictures. As it is impractical to erase what has been printed under each picture, we take pleasure in inserting the accompanying list of titles given by the author - Dr. T. C. Lau himself”.

This is one of the first photobooks published by an amateur photographer to be published in China. See Parr: The Chinese Photobook, From the 1900s to the Present. (2016) p. Rare. Only 6 copies in OCLC.