The Huai He is one of China’s most important rivers. It flows eastwards from Henan province dividing the huge country into a northern and southern half. The river is a vital artery for millions of people, but it also mirrors the flip side of the rapid unchecked growth of the Chinese economy. The cultures and everyday reality in the different provinces may differ significantly, yet the people living along the river are confronted everywhere with the same fact: currently the water of the Huai He resembles a poisonous sewer rather than a life-giving element.

The Swiss photographer Andreas Seibert, who lives in Tokyo, travelled the over 1,000 kilometre-long Huai river from its source to its estuary. Taking the example of the river, he highlights the anxieties and hopes, as well as the daily struggle of the population for survival, forced as they are to come to terms with the fact that – literally – everything is in flux. The work that has resulted is informative, empathetic and startling. The abstract facts take on a sensual aspect in Seibert’s photographs, the ambivalence of which is captivating and provocative. May we delight in the river’s beguiling play of colours when we know what causes it? And how can we bear the melancholy beauty of the landscapes, settlements and people when the reality is permeated by an unsurpassable desolation?

The Fotostiftung Schweiz and the photographer would like to thank for their generous support: Bundesamt für Kultur, Migros-Kulturprozent, Aargauer Kuratorium, george foundation, Fujifilm

Exhibition leaflet