Picture China is a photographic journey through contemporary China. From the teeming metropolises of the east coast to the rural villages of the interior to the lofty Tibetan plateau, New York City based photographer Dan Eckstein traveled 10,000km over the course of eight weeks to document this rapidly changing country. The result is a unique portrait of life in modern China and the issues that its people face.

The project is in the form of a photoblog and is easily navigated by using the archives section to view individual posts. You may also use the categories (listed to the right) to focus in on a particular city, region or topic.

To see more photographs by Dan Eckstein, visit his portfolio site at www.daneckstein.com or visit his permanent photoblog at www.look-closer.net. To get in touch you can email him at info(at)daneckstein.com.

I thought it would be fitting for the first post of this project to focus on what many people consider to be the heart of China- Tiananmen Square. This massive expanse of concrete is one of the world’s biggest public spaces and lies at the geographic center of Beijing. It has been the scene of many important events in modern Chinese history, from the declaration of the People Republic of China in 1949 to the student protests of 1989, and remains one of the main pilgrimage points for Chinese tourists.

On any given day, thousands of people come to fly kites, visit the mausoleum of Chairman Mao or have their picture taken in front of the famous backdrop of Tiananmen gate. While the mood of the place is generally lighthearted, it is impossible to ignore the fact that the square is a key symbol of the might of the Chinese government. From the imposing Communist architecture to the strong army presence to Mao’s portrait hanging on Tiananmen Gate, it is clear that the intention of the square is to let all visitors know exactly who is in charge.

Beijing’s Hutong neighborhoods are some of the liveliest and most interesting areas of the city to explore. Made up of one-story brick and wood houses connected by winding alleyways, the layout of these neighborhoods has changed little in the past thousand years.

The Hutongs are constantly buzzing with activity. Old men tend to their pet birds, circles of people play cards and all manner of goods are bought and sold. The intimate layout of these neighborhoods seems to inspire socialization and tight-knit communities are formed within them.

In Beijing’s race towards modernization many of these neighborhoods are being demolished. Critics claim that the houses are not fit for a modern city and it is true that many of buildings lack proper heating, plumbing and sanitation. While the Hutong’s residents may be better off in newly constructed suburban housing, it cannot be denied that some of the city’s character will be taken with them.

It can sometimes feel that all of Beijing is one giant construction site. Cranes dot the skyline, scaffolding covers whole blocks of buildings and you cannot walk far without navigating around a group of construction workers digging up the street. In an effort to show the world a “new China” during the 2008 Olympics, much of the city is undergoing a facelift of unprecedented proportions. An estimated 1 million migrant workers have come to Beijing to work at the 1000+ construction sites throughout the city.

This building boom has certainly made parts of the city seem more modern but has destroyed many areas which were traditionally residential. Working class people who have lived in certain neighborhoods for generations are forced to move to the outskirts of the city in search of affordable housing.

To see a sampling of the different construction projects underway in Beijing go to www.urbanplanet.com.

The Dashanzi Art District (aka Factory 798) is a huge complex of factories in the northeast outskirts of Beijing. The buildings where built in the 1950’s in the Bauhaus style in cooperation with East Germany and used to produce electronic components for the Chinese military. After the factories fell into disuse in the early 1990’s, several artists and teachers from the nearby Central Academy of Fine Arts set up studios in the complex.

Today the area is home to galleries, artist studios, bookstores, cafes and restaurants. In a country that has a history of censoring controversial art and artists, it is encouraging to see that Beijing’s art scene has found a home and is thriving.

For more detailed information about Factory 798 see the excellent Wikipedia article or visit www.798space.com.

A walk through Beijing’s streets reveals the strange mix of extremes that exist in contemporary China. Newfound affluence contrasts with grinding poverty, gleaming residential towers rise above crumbling Hutongs and pockets of bohemians exist among stoic young soldiers marching in formation through the city streets. While it would be a mistake to assume that Beijing is representative of China as a whole, the scene on the city’s streets is very telling of the direction in which the country is headed.

The Pudong New District is located across the Huangpu River from Shanghai proper and is widely considered to be the financial and commercial center of China. The area is home to thousands of multi-national companies and has come to represent Shanghai’s ascent to the premier business city in China, if not all of Asia.

Until 1990 when it was granted status as a “Special Economic Zone”, the Pudong area was covered by rice patties and farmland and was inhabited mostly by poor immigrant workers. Today it is a maze of skyscrapers and apartment blocks stretching out in all directions. It is home to the world’s third tallest building (the Jin Mao Building), the new Pudong airport and the world’s only commercial maglev train.

This rapid growth has made Shanghai the most modern and wealthy city in China but has created many problems as well. A blanket of smog covers the city on most mornings, the roads are congested with traffic and a housing shortage forces many of Shanghai’s 10 million residents of share very cramped living quarters.

Shanghai’s “Old City” is a four square kilometer section in the south of the metropolis that has yet to succumb to the gentrification and rebuilding which has taken place throughout the rest of the city. This area was the site of the original walled city of the 11th Century and was set-aside as the “Chinese City” when the rest of Shanghai became the base of French and British imperialism in China from the late 19th to mid 20th Centuries.

To walk into this area today is to take a step back in time. In stark contrast to the rest of Shanghai, which in parts could easily be mistaken for London or Tokyo, the old city is a tangled mess of twisting alleyways and dilapidated houses. Still, the area exudes a certain charm and feels more “Chinese” than the rest of the city. Laundry is hung out on telephone wires to dry, children play badminton in the street and everything from live poultry to women’s underwear is sold in impromptu stalls on the side of the road.

If Shanghai represents the direction that China is headed, then the old city may represent the reality of where most of the country remains. While many Shanghai residents have quickly grown accustomed to a more affluent consumer lifestyle, most of the rest of China has seen little of the spoils of this newfound wealth.

A new generation of young Chinese are growing up in a radically different environment than their parents and grandparents. While only a few generations before most people dressed in simple Communist approved attire, young Shanghaiese have taken to the styles of Japan, Korea and the West. In few places are the changes that have transformed Shanghai more apparent than inside one of the city’s huge malls where masses of young people gather to shop for the latest fashions.

The Huangpu River runs through the heart of Shanghai dividing the Pudong New Area from the rest of the city and connecting to the Yangzi 30km upstream as both rivers empty into the East China Sea. The river is one of China’s major shipping arteries and sees a full one-third of the country’s international trade. The water is constantly buzzing with activity as coutless barges compete for space with huge freight ships from places as far away as Panama and the Middle East.