Haizhu held a symposium on July 18 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Guangzhou Suburb Farmers Photo Exhibition at the Yang Duirong Photography Museum.

The Guangzhou Suburb Farmers Photo Exhibition was held on July 15, 1983 in Beijing, which was China's first farmers' photography exhibition held in the national capital. The photographers were all farmers from the outskirts of Haizhu and they used their cameras to record the changes in their lives.

Zhu Xuemei, a resident of Haihzu, poses with a photo of herself taken 40 years ago. [Photo/WeChat account: gzhzfb]

The purpose of the event is to reflect the changes in life and the eras, through a comparison of past and present. He Liqian, the former secretary of Longtan village and one of the organizers of the symposium, has been involved in photography since 1979. Over the past four decades, he's been using his camera to document the changes in the urban and rural areas of Haizhu.

He Liqian introduces himself in this photo. [Photo/WeChat account: gzhzfb]

The Yang Duirong Photographic Museum, where the symposium was held, exhibited the historical images created by photographer Yang Duirong 40 years ago and the photographic equipment used in that year. Most of the photos faithfully record the rural past in Haizhu district, which is full of historical charm.