I was deeply touched by the beautiful photography work in this book published in 1985. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Hiroji Kubota, a great Japanese photographer, vividly documented the people and their daily life in China using his unique camera language. His colorful work is a valuable and rare source for young people to learn the life in China during the 1980s. Moreover, it carries special memories that only belong to that past age.
不得不承认，有些地区的景象，破败、贫穷得超出了我的想象。然而，看完这些照片，我并不为那个艰辛的年代而感到难过。令我感动的是，我看到了希望，生气，与昂扬的精神面貌，而这些元素，反而在当下富足的生活环境中变得罕见。
我个人认为，这本书的主题是“劳动者”。上海南京路熙熙攘攘的上班族，放眼望去，无论男女老少，全是白色和浅蓝色的衬衣，充满着单调却又有趣的时代特色；集市上戴着白帽子的卖鹅女工，胆大心细，一手抓鹅一手拿刀，干脆利落。一片绿油油的君山茶园里，是戴着草帽挂着箩筐的采茶女；小河穿过的油菜花田地里，是扛着锄头去耕作的农民。景德镇的老师傅全神贯注地把弄着手中雪白的瓷器；宁波寺庙前的老和尚抄着袖子倚在门前。码头的工人扛着货物，桂林的渔夫在傍晚油灯闪烁的微光里向江心划着竹筏。吐鲁番的汉子在戈壁滩似有非有的路上赶着驴车，内蒙古的放牧人潇洒地驰骋在辽阔的大草原。西双版纳与喀什的劳动妇女裹着五彩斑斓的头巾，笑得那么灿烂… …
也许这就是摄影的力量吧。它带你走进一个时代，走进一群人、一个人的生活，并把那份情绪和内核，用独特的镜头语言从纷乱的世界中提取出来，让你感同身受。
Selected photos from Hiroji Kubota’s album
