French photography journal L’Oeil de la Photographie (The Eye of Photography) highlighted the Loewentheil Collection’s two “landmark” exhibitions at Cornell University: Lai Fong (1839-1890): Photographer of China and Lai Fong and Thomas Child: Photographs of Late Qing Dynasty Chinese Street Life.
This unprecedented exhibition provides a rare opportunity to see China and its people through the lens of the Chinese master photographer at the historical moment before the epochal transformations of the 20th century. … Lai’s artistic legacy, grounded in traditional Chinese art, influenced generations of photographers including contemporary Chinese image-makers.