Beijing, 07:03 am ... a storm turns the
day into night… and the light of a headlamp
in the right element, provides a magical lighting,
to the register of a typical Chinese scene.
Moments. Like this and many others. Records
of cyclists and their pedal vehicles. Bicycles
- with or without pick up bed- unicycles and
the ubiquitous rickshaws, in its various configurations.
Freeze, running, transporting or being taken.
Some, working tool. Others, instruments of
pleasure.
Originally, the term rickshaw was referring
to a type of passenger vehicle pulled by a man
on foot. Today it is accepted as appointment
of its replacement, the bicycle rickshaw, also
known as “cyclo” or “pedicab”.
This kind of taxi is easily found in Southeast
Asia. They are used by its residents and are
so characteristic as the double-deckers of London
or the Rome’s scooters.
Contrary to what occurs in Western Europe,
in this region, unfortunately, the bike is not
recognized as a conscious option, neither for
the physical and mental well being offered nor
for its environmental friendliness. It is, rather,
a necessity. Southeast-Asia cyclists, in his
vast majority, pedals only if they still do
not have access to another type of transport.
Eduardo tried here to register the symbiosis
of Southeast Asia with these vehicles, their
sociological, cultural and even aesthetic contributions
to the communities in which it occurs. He acclaims
this nice, popular, healthy and quiet, mean
of transportation. He, also, tried to retrieve
daily life fragments of this integration, which
are at serious risk of being removed by the
wheels of changes, so fast in this part of the
world. Some of these scenes, in fact, are now
virtually extinct. Even in those cities, globally
recognized for its massive amount of cyclists,
the number of bicycles, though large, has, apparently,
being supplanted by the automotive vehicles.
Motorcycles in Hanoi, cars in the Chinese capital.
Despite this, two images in this collection
may well illustrate a more optimistic conclusion
on the subject. In Xian, home of world-famous
army of terracotta, a reflection of the Bell
Tower, built in 1384, refers to the past. While
the futuristic contours of another tower, the
Pearl TV, at Pudong district in Shanghai, pointed
out the days to come. Present in both frames,
the unmistakable silhouette seems to answer
questions about its permanency.
Victor Barreto, curator.
