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User:Crisco 1492/The True Record

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The True Record
A faded magazine dover depicting a man touching a banner. The text is entirely in Chinese.
Vol. 1, No. 1
EditorGao Qifeng
First issue5 June 1912; 112 years ago (1912-06-05)
Final issueMarch 1913; 111 years ago (1913-03)
CountryChina
Based inShanghai

The True Record (Chinese: 真相畫報; pinyin: Zhēn Xiāng Huà Bào, literally "Truth Illustrated") was a Chinese magazine published in Shanghai, China, between June 1912 and March 1913.

History

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Background

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Meanwhile, the nascent Republic of China sought a new culture, the philosopher and revolutionary Cai Yuanpei advocated for using aesthetic education to cultivate awareness of the needs of the nation.[1][2]

Nineteen new magazines began publication in this era, collectively serving to capitalize on demand for new, modern materials.[3] Unlike traditional Chinese publications, which often produced using woodblock printing on soft paper and bound in plain paper or cloth, these new magazines used modern printing technology and illustrated covers.[4] The True Record was one of these, though according to Julia F. Andrews of Ohio State University, it was characterized more by its political mission than the commercial enterprises of its contemporaries.[5]

Establishment

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Gao Qifeng, editor-in-chief of The True Record

The True Record was established by Gao Qifeng and Gao Jianfu,[6] artists from Guangdong who, while studying in Japan in the late 1900s, had joined the Tongmenghui. They had moved to Shanghai in 1908, with Gao Jianfu leading a revolutionary cell that was responsible for several assassinations.[7] Gao Qifeng became the editor-in-chief of the new magazine,[8] with Gao Jianfu and Huang Binhong as supporting editors.[9] Also involved were several alumni of the Journal of Current Pictorial, including He Jianshi (何劍士) and Zheng Nuquan (鄭磊泉), who had used their manhua (comics) to criticize the Qing dynasty.[10] Another artist, Kwan Wai-nung, travelled from Hong Kong to contribute to the publication.[11] Further contributions came from Chen Shuren, a colleague of the Gaos in Japan,[12] and Xu Beihong, an employee of their bookstore.[2]

The True Record had its headquarters at No. 4 Road, Huifu Lane,[13] with a mailing address of 45 Wei Foo Lee (Foochow Road)[a] provided on the cover.[14] In February 1913, operations moved to Middle Section No. 84, Chessboard Street.[13] Shanghai, a major port, was at a crossroads of western and eastern cultures; it thus attracted young intellectuals and progressives from throughout China,[1] and gained a reputation for modernity and cosmopolitanism.[15]

Publication was handled by the Aesthetic Bookstore,[7] a combined gallery, exhibition hall, and publishing house that also sold reproductions of Chinese and western paintings.[16][17] Printing was centralized in Shanghai and handled by the Commerce Culture Print Shop,[13] and used a combination of copperplate printing and collotype.[18] Funding has been alleged to have come from Sun Yat-sen, the Guangdong government, or a combination thereof.[19]

Some photography for The True Record was provided by the Guangdong-based China Photo Team (中华写真队),[6] which had been established by Sun Yat-sen]] with the support of the provincial government to cover republican war efforts.[20] This group, headquartered at Provincial Capital Bund No. 2 Road in Guangzhou, was rebranded the Guangdong Branch of the True Record Press after The True Record published its second issue.[13]

Publication

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Beginning with the third issue, The True Record included its English-language title

The first edition of The True Record was published on 5 June 1912. It was prefaced by introductions from Li Huaishuang (李怀霜), Xie Yingbo (谢英伯), and Hu Hanmin, all of whom were Tongmenghui members.[6] In his contribution, Li Huaishuang introduced Gao Qifeng, highlighting his revolutionary activities, and provided the magazine's mission statement: to monitor the new republic, report the welfare of the people, promote socialism, and distribute world knowledge.[b][6] Initially, The True Record was scheduled to publish a new issue every ten days, with a target of ten thousand words per issue.[21] The price was a quarter yuan per copy, or seven yuan for a one-year subscription[22] – expected to be 36 issues. This schedule was ultimately not realized, and publication was irregular.[23]

Over time, The True Magazine magazine expanded. Initially distributed throughout China via its offices Shanghai and Guangdong, by the fourth issue a branch office had been established at the Cao Wanfeng Bookstore in Singapore, serving Southeast Asia. Distribution had reached Honolulu by the seventh issue.[c] As the magazine expanded its distribution networks, it sought to internationalize. With the third issue, the English-language title The True Record was provided together with a mailing address. The subtitle "Illustrated Magazine" was included beginning with the fourth issue. Captions for images were provided in English and Chinese.[6]

Closure

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In February 1912, President Sun Yat-sen – a leading member of the revolutionary anti-Qing organization Tongmenghui – had ceded leadership of the republic to Yuan Shikai, a military leader who had negotiated the abdication of Qing Emperor Puyi.[24] As the new provisional president consolidated his power, he began to suppress the Nationalist Party and curtail its activities.[25] Song Jiaoren was assassinated at Shanghai Station in March 1913, with Yuan rumoured to have been involved; Song had gained broad popular support for the nationalists, and was a potential threat to Yuan's power.[26]

The True Record also closed during this period,[27] publishing its seventeenth and final issue in March 1913.[13] Sources differ as to the reason. The comics scholar Wendy Siuyi Wong writes that, in 1913, the magazine was banned;[27] this is supported by Tang Hongfeng of Beijing Normal University, who suggests that the magazine's implication of Yuan and Zhao Bingjun in Song's assassination of was the deciding factor.[28] Meanwhile, the art historian Christina Chu describes the magazine as closing after government funding was pulled;[2] this is supported by Andrews, who notes that the magazine's lavish production values would have limited its commercial viability without subsidies.[5]

Many of the magazine's staff left Shanghai after its closure. Zheng Nuquan fled to Hong Kong, dying there by the end of the decade.[10] Kwan Wai-nung likewise returned to Hong Kong, where he used the tiger-painting techniques he had learned from the Gaos to advertise Tiger Balm.[29] Gao Qifeng may have undergone a self-imposed exile in Japan, where he had studied the previous decade, returning some time later.[d] Such flights were common among nationalists, with Sun escaping to Japan in August 1913.[26]

Description and content

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The True Record was printed in black ink on thin acid paper. Covers were printed on higher quality paper,[5] allowing the printing of half-tone colour illustrations. Some issues featured colour insets,[22] and many contained fold-outs that could be removed for display.[e][30] Issues were 18 by 27 centimetres (7.1 in × 10.6 in) in size, and ranged in length from fifty to eighty pages.[22]

Imagery

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Drawings by staff members, featured in Issue 11 of The True Record

The Gao brothers believed that pictorials could best "arouse people's patriotic thoughts and support the order of social progress".[f][16] Consequently, imagery was extensively used in the magazine. In the first issue, The True Record enumerated seven types of images that it sought to publish: historical painting, art painting, photographic paintings of geology, parodic paintings, photographic paintings of current affairs, photographic paintings of scenic spots, and paintings of current affairs.[g][21]

The use of thick paper allowed The True Record to feature extensive colour on its covers.[5] Subjects were diverse, but often involved individuals uncovering a truth.[28] The cover of the first edition depicted a young artist, garbed in clothing reflective of a Western bohemian, sitting on a stool and leaning toward the title of the magazine[31] The cover of the third issue, published on 1 July 1912, depicted a man in a western suit pulling a curtain back, revealing the Chinese word 真相 ("truth").[32] The final issue of The True Record depicted a man in Western garb, looking into a mirror and seeing the spirit of an imperial; Tang suggests that this was intended to criticize Yuan Shikai.[28] Many of these covers were produced by Gao Qifeng.[32]

The pages of magazine contained numerous paintings by the Gaos and other artists,[7] with two issues including sections dedicated to the staff artists.[13] Tigers were commonly depicted, allegorically calling for boldness and bravery in the nation-building process;[11] lions and eagles, favourites of Gao Qifeng that were understood to reflect a revolutionary spirit,[33] also appeared.[22] Political manhua, satirizing topics that ranged from political parties and corruption to misers and social parasites, were included in many issues. Some are signed, generally with pseudonyms, while others are uncredited.[h][20][27]

Almost two hundred photographs[i] were included in The True Record throughout its run, including thirty in the first issue alone.[21] The political activities of Sun Yat-sen were covered extensively, with a particular focus on his interactions with the common person.[34] Military subjects such as field exercises and the naval fleet were frequently depicted as well.[20] International stories also received coverage, with three issues[j] covering the Balkan Wars.[20]

Text

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Art was a favoured topic in the articles of The True Record. In essays, the Gaos called for the creation of a "new national art", based on the synthesis of traditional Chinese painting with foreign art, as well as improvements in art education.[7] Huang decried the abstraction of literati approaches to landscape painting and urged greater verisimilitude.[35] Chen, over the course of fifteen issues, serialized his translation of a Japanese book on new painting methods derived from western traditions. Excluding certain chapters, such as discussions of watercolour, his adaptation also expanded its coverage to include references to ancient masters such as Wang Wei and Wu Daozi.[36]

 
Coverage of Song Jiaoren's assassination

Other articles explored the history of art and artists. Gao Jianfu, for instance, discussed Ju Chao – a relative of his own teacher, Ju Lian – in a 1913 issue, praising his graceful brushstrokes and vibrant colours.[37] Huang detailed the history of painting in the Song and two other dynasties over the course of more than twelve instalments.[38] Three issues provided a comparative overview of ink and oil painting in different countries, presenting images of representative works along with introductions to their artists.[k][13] Elsewhere, articles explored the history of art in a global context,[39] provided insight into ceramics and pencil drawing,[36] Several works of creative fiction, both prose and poetry, were also included.[18]

To fulfil its social mandate, The True Record also offered news and social commentary.[7] These generally promoted the perspectives of the nationalist movement, such that the magazine has been described as its mouthpiece.[13] Questions of advancing the nation were often discussed. One article argued that technology news could promote innovation and stimulate social progress,[l][40] and indeed new technologies from waterbikes to armaments were featured. Others urged economic nationalism and the expansion of industrial art,[41] or condemned the practice of miserly living.[42]

Sun Yat-sen featured prominently in the magazine, which drew parallels between the nationalist leader and the Hongwu Emperor, who had risen from the peasantry to lead China. He was depicted as interacting extensively with others in society, distinguishing him from the earlier Qing emperors.[43] Several articles detailed individuals who had fought against the Qing dynasty, such as Shi Jianru,[44] who had been attempted to kill the Qing governor of Guangdong in 1900,[45] and Bai Yukun [zh],[44] who had been killed in the Luanzhou Uprising [zh].[46] Some articles, such as "Chu Ziwen Destroys His Family to Help the Country"[m] extolled the virtues of persons who continued to contribute to the nationalist cause; it asked, "the country is the family. If the country does not exist, where is the family?"".[n][47]

Initially, nationalist publications such as The True Record had supported Yuan and his Beiyang government. However, as it became increasingly authoritarian, the president received extensive criticism.[48] Problems such as an ineffective government and weak bureaucracy were highlighted. [27] This reached a peak in 1913, when The True Record published an article detailing Song's assassination. Two photographs of Song's corpse accompanied the article, one clothed and the other nude from the waist up, which Gu Zheng of Fudan University describes as consciously included to increase public outrage and highlight the cruelty of the killing.[49] Yuan, meanwhile, was included in a list of persons involved; his photograph depicted him not in the military uniform of the revolutionary, but adornments of one serving the Qing.[26]

Impact and analysis

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Pan Yaochang and Xu Li of the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts argue that, by turning to the international world of art, the magazine drew the vitality needed to "push the culture and art of Shanghai to a new height";[o][21] at the same time, they write, its ideas contributed to the concepts of aesthetic education that marked the May Fourth Movement.[50] Gao Qifeng, Gao Jianfu, and Chen Shuren later expanded upon the concept of "national art", developing what has become known as the Lingnan school of painting by blending Chinese, Japanese, and western techniques.[48]

In the realm of publication, The True Record was one of the first illustrated magazines in the Republic of China,[9] as well as its first art journal.[18][6] Liang Desuo, an editor of the pictorial magazine The Young Companion, considered it to be the beginning of photography in Chinese pictorial magazines;[21] photographs had appeared in domestic publications as early as the mid-1900s, but without photozincography their use had been limited.[22] In her history of photography in China, Claire Roberts describes The True Record as one of the most important illustrated magazines published in the first years of the Republic of China.[32]

The magazine's usage of photography has drawn extensive discussion. Yi Gu of the University of Toronto writes that The True Record is among the best examples of the process through which photography was used side-by-side with other forms of imagery, including prints, manhua, and reproductions of painting, to create new understandings of "truth" in Chinese visual culture.[p] Other scholars have put greater emphasis on the magazine's photographic content. Citing its coverage of revolutionaries, the communication scholar Xia Yi of Nanjing Xiaozhuang University argues that the magazine positioned photography as a more timely and objective medium.[44] Pan and Xu note that, by employing photography, the magazine was better able to report current affairs; while earlier publications such as the 19th-century Dianshizhai Pictorial[q] had contained some news coverage, they relied on hand-drawn illustrations and thus tended to place greater emphasis on everyday life.[20]

Explanatory notes

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  1. ^ Also Fuzhou Road (福州路); this street was renowned as a center of the book trade in Shanghai (Warra 1999, p. 63).
  2. ^ Such a mission was reflective of Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the People (Floriani 2023, p. 225).
  3. ^ Sun Yat-sen had spent time in Hawaii before and during his exile, with six recorded visits. He had established the Revive China Society in Honolulu in 1894, and by 1912 Hawaii still hosted numerous Chinese nationalists and revolutionaries (Lum & Lum 1999, pp. vi–vii)
  4. ^ In Grove Art Online, Tian S. Liang writes that Gao returned to China in early 1914 (Liang 2022), while the author Cai Dengshan [zh] asserts that he only returned after Yuan's death in 1916 (Cai 2023). However, covering the life of Gao Qifeng for the Southern Metropolis Daily, Wang (2008) notes that this exile narrative is not universally accepted.
  5. ^ For example, the first issue offered three panoramas of Wuhan, respectively depicting Hanyang and Hankou, the Han and Yangtze Rivers, and Wuchang (Roberts 2013, p. 59).
  6. ^ Original: "唤起人群爱国之思想，扶植社会进行之秩序". At the time, literacy rates were low, and thus images had further reach than written text (Pan & Xu 2011, p. 132).
  7. ^ Original: "历史画, 美术画, 地势写真画, 滑稽画, 时事写真画, 名胜写真画和时事画". Translation by Liang (2022).
  8. ^ The magazine's primary political cartoonists He Jianshi, Zheng Nuquan, and Ma Xingchi (马星驰) used more than a dozen pen-names between them (Pan & Xu 2011, p. 134).
  9. ^ Chinese has several terms for photography, including 摄影 and 照片. The True Record used the term 寫真, which Floriani (2023, p. 225) translates as "transcription of truth".
  10. ^ Issues 12, 13, and 14.
  11. ^ One article in this series, by Chen, introduced the work of the painter of animals Edwin Landseer (Croizier 2023, p. 70).
  12. ^ This article was translated from a Japanese source and serialized between Issue 1 and Issue 8, non-consecutively (Warra 1999, p. 69).
  13. ^ Original: "楚子文毁家纾国难".
  14. ^ Original: "国即是家, 国之不存, 家于何有?"
  15. ^ Original "将上海这座都市的文化艺术推向一个崭新的高".
  16. ^ Highlighting one article that combined a sixteen-image series depicting a moulting cicada with taxonomic discussion of the insects as well as poems that had accompanied paintings of them, Gu (2013, p. 133) notes that the magazine "accentuate[s] the positive potential of photography" while assimilating it into the narrative truth offered by pre-modern Chinese painting. This, she suggests, is reinforced by the covers of the first two editions, which respectively depicted a painter and a photographer (Gu 2013, p. 134).
  17. ^ This magazine was a supplement to the newspaper Shen Bao (Pan & Xu 2011, p. 134).

References

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  1. ^ a b Pan & Xu 2011, p. 131.
  2. ^ a b c Chu 1998, p. 69.
  3. ^ Andrews 2018, p. 22.
  4. ^ Andrews 2018, p. 23.
  5. ^ a b c d Andrews 2018, p. 26.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Pan & Xu 2011, p. 132.
  7. ^ a b c d e Andrews & Shen 2012, p. 35.
  8. ^ Floriani 2023.
  9. ^ a b Gu 2013, p. 131.
  10. ^ a b Wong 2002, p. 14.
  11. ^ a b Cochran 2006, p. 121.
  12. ^ Croizier 2023, p. 68.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h Liang 2022.
  14. ^ Wong 2002, p. 32.
  15. ^ Warra 1999, p. 61.
  16. ^ a b Wang 2008.
  17. ^ Zhu 2017.
  18. ^ a b c Hong & Li 2022.
  19. ^ Warra 1999, p. 62.
  20. ^ a b c d e Pan & Xu 2011, p. 134.
  21. ^ a b c d e Pan & Xu 2011, p. 133.
  22. ^ a b c d e Floriani 2023, p. 224.
  23. ^ Floriani 2023, p. 236.
  24. ^ Floriani 2023, p. 231.
  25. ^ Roberts 2013, p. 60.
  26. ^ a b c Floriani 2023, p. 233.
  27. ^ a b c d Wong 2002, p. 33.
  28. ^ a b c Tang 2018, p. 116.
  29. ^ Cochran 2006, p. 122.
  30. ^ Roberts 2013, p. 59.
  31. ^ Gu 2013, p. 134.
  32. ^ a b c Roberts 2013, p. 58.
  33. ^ Guangdong Museum, Gao Qifeng.
  34. ^ Floriani 2023, p. 228.
  35. ^ Gu 2013, p. 133.
  36. ^ a b Pan & Xu 2011, pp. 215–216.
  37. ^ Tao & Yang 2017, pp. 214–215.
  38. ^ Nishigami 2018, p. 6.
  39. ^ Pan & Xu 2011, p. 215.
  40. ^ Warra 1999, p. 69.
  41. ^ Warra 1999, pp. 70–71.
  42. ^ Warra 1999, p. 82.
  43. ^ Floriani 2023, p. 226.
  44. ^ a b c Xia 2017, p. 203.
  45. ^ Wakeman 2003, p. 168.
  46. ^ Dai & Wang 2019, p. 171.
  47. ^ Pan & Xu 2011, p. 115.
  48. ^ a b Cai 2023.
  49. ^ Liu 2019.
  50. ^ Pan & Xu 2011, p. 138.

Works cited

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