SHOW 12-2-2026 THE SHOW BEGIJS WITH DOUBTS ABOUT AI -- a useful invetion that can match the excitement of the first decades of Photography. November 1955 NADAR'S BALLOON AND THE BIRTH OF PHOTOGRAPHY Colleague Anika Burgess, Flashes of Brilliance. In 1863, the photographer Nadar undertook a perilous ascent in a giant balloon to fund experiments for heavier-than-air flight, illustrating the adventurous spirit required of early photographers. This era began with Daguerre's 1839 introduction of the daguerreotype, a process involving highly dangerous chemicals like mercury and iodine to create unique, mirror-like images on copper plates. Pioneers risked their lives using explosive materials to capture reality with unprecedented clarity and permanence. NUMBER 1 PHOTOGRAPHING THE MOON AND SEA Colleague Anika Burgess, Flashes of Brilliance. Early photography expanded scientific understanding, allowing humanity to visualize the inaccessible. James Nasmyth produced realistic images of the moon by photographing plaster models based on telescope observations, aiming to prove its volcanic nature. Simultaneously, Louis Boutan spent a decade perfecting underwater photography, capturing divers in hard-hat helmets. These efforts demonstrated that photography could be a tool for scientific analysis and discovery, revealing details of the natural world previously hidden from the human eye. NUMBER 2 SOCIAL JUSTICE AND NATURE CONSERVATION Colleague Anika Burgess, Flashes of Brilliance. Photography became a powerful agent for social and environmental change. Jacob Riis utilized dangerous flash powder to document the squalid conditions of Manhattan tenements, exposing poverty to the public in How the Other Half Lives. While his methods raised consent issues, they illuminated grim realities. Conversely, Carleton Watkins hauled massive equipment into the wilderness to photograph Yosemite; his majestic images influenced legislation signed by Lincoln to protect the land, proving photography's political impact. NUMBER 3 X-RAYS, SURVEILLANCE, AND MOTION Colleague Anika Burgess, Flashes of Brilliance. The discovery of X-rays in 1895 sparked a "new photography" craze, though the radiation caused severe injuries to early practitioners and subjects. Photography also entered the realm of surveillance; British authorities used hidden cameras to photograph suffragettes, while doctors documented asylum patients without consent. Finally, Eadweard Muybridge's experiments captured horses in motion, settling debates about locomotion and laying the technical groundwork for the future development of motion pictures. NUMBER 4 THE AWAKENING OF CHINA'S ECONOMY Colleague Anne Stevenson-Yang, Wild Ride. Returning to China in 1994, the author witnessed a transformation from the destitute, Maoist uniformity of 1985 to a budding export economy. In the earlier era, workers slept on desks and lacked basic goods, but Deng Xiaoping's realization that the state needed hard currency prompted reforms. Deng established Special Economic Zones like Shenzhen to generate foreign capital while attempting to isolate the population from foreign influence, marking the start of China's export boom. NUMBER 5 RED CAPITALISTS AND SMUGGLERS Colleague Anne Stevenson-Yang, Wild Ride. Following the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, China reopened to investment in 1992, giving rise to "red capitalists"—often the children of party officials who traded political access for equity. As the central government lost control over local corruption and smuggling rings, it launched "Golden Projects" to digitize and centralize authority over customs and taxes. To avert a banking collapse in 1998, the state created asset management companies to absorb bad loans, effectively rolling over massive debt. NUMBER 6 GHOST CITIES AND THE STIMULUS TRAP Colleague Anne Stevenson-Yang, Wild Ride. China's growth model shifted toward massive infrastructure spending, resulting in "ghost cities" and replica Western towns built to inflate GDP rather than house people. This "Potemkin culture" peaked during the 2008 Olympics, where facades were painted to impress foreigners. To counter the global financial crisis, Beijing flooded the economy with loans, fueling a real estate bubble that consumed more cement in three years than the US did in a century, creating unsustainable debt. NUMBER 7 STAGNATION UNDER SURVEILLANCE Colleague Anne Stevenson-Yang, Wild Ride. The severe lockdowns of the COVID-19 pandemic shattered consumer confidence, leaving citizens insecure and unwilling to spend, which stalled economic recovery. Local governments, cut off from credit and burdened by debt, struggle to provide basic services. Faced with economic stagnation, Xi Jinping has rejected market liberalization in favor of increased surveillance and control, prioritizing regime security over resolving the structural debt crisis or restoring the dynamism of previous decades. NUMBER 8 FAMINE AND FLIGHT TO FREEDOM Colleague Mark...
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