Description
Black and white photograph showing an aerial view in the centre of which two rickshaw pullers can be seen with their rickshaws. A third rickshaw is in the bottom left corner of the image, with its puller out of view. A woman leading a small child can be seen in the top left corner. The two rickshaws in the centre cast long shadows in front of them.

Significance statement
Rickshaws were introduced to Shanghai from Japan in 1886 and made their appearance in Peking in 1898. Once one of the major modes of transport in the city, in the 1930s they were gradually replaced by pedicabs. They disappeared from the streets of Peking in 1953. In 'A photographer in Old Peking' (p. 107), Hedda Morrison wrote: 'The woman with the child had been bargaining with the rickshaw men in the foreground. As part of the bargaining process she turns to walk away but will be called back by the man who accepts the fare offered. It was arduous work for the pullers who suffered especially during the bitterly harsh north China winter'. MorrisonÂ?s European training is evident in this tightly controlled bird's-eye view which has been framed to enhance the power of the image. The strong composition created by the diagonal placement of the rickshaws and shadows is counterbalanced by the figures of a mother and her child.

Production notes
This is one of a large number of photographs that were taken by Hedda Morrison (1908-1991) during her years of residence in Peking (Beijing), China 1933-1946.

History notes
Exhibited in 'Peking: 1933-1946 - A photographic impression', Menzies Library, Australian National University, 17-30 June 1967; 'An Asian experience: 1933-67', organised by the Asian Studies Association of Australia, Fisher Library Foyer, University of Sydney, 12-30 May 1986. Reproduced in Hedda Morrison, 'A photographer in Old Peking', Hong Kong, Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1985, p. 107, with the caption: 'The woman with the child had been bargaining with the rickshaw men in the foreground. As part of the bargaining process she turns to walk away but will be called back by the man who accepts the fare offered. It was arduous work for the pullers who suffered especially during the bitterly harsh north China winter'.

Credit line
Gift of Mr Alastair Morrison, 1992

Registration number
92/1414-211