17 Years On Camera

In many ways， China in 2023 is an unrecognizable place compared to 2006. With bluer skies， two Olympics under its belt， bullet trains and delivery bikes criss-crossing every city—as well as another pandemic， climate change， and a rapidly aging society—the country’s improvements have been tremendous， as have its challenges.

In 2006， one of the country’s oldest publishing companies， The Commercial Press， decided to start The World of Chinese magazine. At first a bilingual publication for Chinese learners， it later evolved into the award-winning resource for human-centered storytelling on China that you hold in your hands today. Seventeen years after the first issue， TWOC is publishing its 100th magazine， and we want to dedicate this photo story to all the people and stories that came before us—selecting examples from our rich archive of photo stories， one from each year， that reflect the aims and the evolution of our storytelling over the past 100 issues.

2006

The longest and highest highland railway in the world， the Qinghai-Tibet Railway linking Xining and Lhasa， began operation in 2006 （Issue 1， Yuan Ruilun）

2007

Consisting of nearly 700 pools， the Wucai （“Five Color”） Pools are the jewel in the crown of Huanglong Scenic Area， Sichuan province （Issue 4， Jiang Yuebin）

2008

Model Hu Chen dressed in Olympic merchandise in Beijing for TWOC’s “Olympic Issue，” published ahead of the Beijing 2008 Olympics （Issue 10， Zhu Jiang）

2009

A man with cormorants trained to catch fish on the Li River in Yangshuo， Guangxi， at dusk （Issue 18， Daniel Allen）

2010

As China’s high speed rail network expands， its “slow trains” are gradually disappearing （Issue 24， Geoffrey Gunn）

2011

Porters known as bangbangr， literally “stick stick，” transport goods between downtown Chongqing and Chaotianmen dock on the Yangtze River. Bangbangr are a unique though disappearing profession in this mountainous city. （Issue 27， Liu Jiang）

2012

Locals take a rest by the iconic red exterior wall of the Forbidden City in Beijing （Issue 32， Chris Cherry）

2013

A Tibetan man picks chongcao （caterpillar fungus）， a popular traditional Chinese medicine ingredient， on the plateau（Issue 42， Natalie Thomas）

2014

Outside the century-old Lixin Apartments in Wuxi， Jiangsu province. The apartments were demolished shortly after this photo was taken， and the community relocated. （Issue 45， Yulong）

2015

Workers high above the ground extend power lines in Foshan， Guangdong province （Issue 52， Meng Qingchun）

2016

Guan Qunsu， a dragon boat maker in Guangdong， paints one of his creations. Guan’s family has been crafting boats for generations. （Issue 60， Meng Qingchun）

2017

An artisan makes lanterns by hand in a small workshop in Beishan “Taobao village，” a community in Zhejiang province where many households hope to make their fortune from e-commerce （Issue 62， Hatty Liu）

2018

A customer enjoying a drink in an independent coffee shop in Beijing. Cafe culture has blossomed among urban youth in recent decades. （Issue 70， Gopa Biswas Caesar）

2019

A 17-meter bronze Confucius’s statue is the centerpiece of an amusement park in Jiangsu province. China’s theme park sector has boomed in recent decades. （Issue 77， Chen Ronghui）

2020

Locals take part in a millennia-old fishing tradition on frozen Chagan Lake， Jilin province， in the winter. Fishers use horses， hand drills， and vast nets to collect the winter catch from beneath the ice. （Issue 81， Tina Xu）

2021

Children watching a village opera performance. Regional operas are struggling to survive as resources dry up and audience tastes change. （Issue 90， Huang Ruide）

2022

The Covid-19 pandemic affected life in China for three years. In late May 2022， after nearly two months of strict lockdown measures， Shanghai eased restrictions， prompting joy and relief among residents. （Web story， Nicoco Chan）

2023

China’s aging population has renewed focus on elderly care. At one innovative senior home in Sichuan， residents are encouraged to have fun， like during this fashion show. （Issue 99， courtesy of Zhou Hang）