Photographer Tom Carter’s CHINA: Portrait of a People documents the 56 wide-ranging ethnic groups living in the 33 provinces that compose the vast, overwhelmingly diverse nation.
Backpacking through every region of China over the course of two years, the photojournalist met and documented everyday people who live and work far from the tourist-traveled trails. Gaining his subjects’ trust, while at times risking arrest, Carter captured the fascinating faces that comprise the People’s Republic of China, creating a stunning document in the process.
Visit Tom Carter’s website, read an interview with the photographer, and buy a copy of the book
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Click through below for a gallery of images from the book.
Chengdu: a bastion of urban modernity
Tibet: white mare and rider following an ancient tea trading route
Guangxi: children have fun husking the communal corn
Gegentala: Mongolian wrestler postures for his audience
Zhejiang: shop girl shopping
Gansu: the sand dunes of Dunhuang
Henan: Young man practicing Shaolin martial arts
Kashgar: Uighur girl
Hubei: going to market
Gansu: hip Tibetan youth
Sichuan: a Tibetan family on their annual Buddhist pilgrimage
Shanxi: Miner in Linfen, China’s coal capital
Macau: prostitution helps drive the tourism industry
Fujian: traditional farmer’s waterproofs made of palm tree bark
Guizhou: learning to share
Xining: girl of the Hui minority
Shanghai: the largest city in China
Wuqiao: contortionist practicing back bends