Liang Shitai

Pavilion surrounded by ash trees, Tianjin, 1888
Liang Shitai, Li Hongzhang, c. 1870. Albumen print. Source: The Stephan Loewentheil China Photography Collection.

Liang Shitai 梁时泰 – also known as Liang Seetay – (fl. 1870s-1890s) was one of the foremost portrait photographers working in China in the late Qing dynasty. The artist specialized in portraits of high-ranking officials, and photographs that appealed to Chinese clients interested in literati painting. As one of the first photographers of prominent Qing Dynasty officials and other distinguished citizens, Liang Shitai's work convinced the Qing court to embrace photography as an artistic medium for the first time.[1][2] He established his studio in Hong Kong in the early 1870s, then relocated to Shanghai in the late 1870s, and later to Tianjin in the 1880s.[3] Liang Shitai's photographs are among the most historically important and visually exquisite of their time.

  1. ^ Cody, Jeffrey W.; Terpak, Frances, eds. (2011). Brush & Shutter: Early Photography in China. Getty Publications.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference China Daily was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Liang Shitai". Photography of China. Retrieved 1 October 2020.