The images Genthe took of San Francisco’s Chinatown are the only known photographs of the historic neighborhood from before the devastating 1906 earthquake. Although an invaluable record, Genthe’s documentation reflects an outsider’s view of the segregated community, during a period when people of Chinese descent were the target of rampant, often violent discrimination and were legally barred from obtaining US citizenship. Genthe covertly photographed many of his subjects using a small portable camera. He sometimes cropped his images to remove evidence of Western culture, such as signs in English, emphasizing stereotypical attributes imposed on the neighborhood and its inhabitants.
Gallery label from 2024
