Shocked! They used a lens to record the 40 years of change in Shenzhen
Few cities in China, like Shenzhen, have transformed from a fishing village into an international metropolis in just a few decades.
It was in 1980 that the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone was formally established, and the first batch of builders poured into Shenzhen from all over the country. At that time, they heard the sound of piling on the construction site every day. The road was dusty everywhere. Shenzhen was like a big construction site.
In 40 years, the first development in Shenzhen was Luohu, followed by Futian, and then gradually developed all the way west to Nanshan. Among them, Shennan Avenue, known as "Changan Street" in Shenzhen, spans Luohu, Futian and Nanshan District. In the eyes of Shenzhen people, it not only has the function of transportation, but also collects the classics of the city.
The story of folk photographer Wei Hongxing and his son Wei Dongsheng happened on Shennan Avenue.
In 1982, Wei Hongxing came to Shenzhen to engage in engineering construction. Due to his work relationship, he often shuttled between construction sites and took pictures with his camera when he was free. In Wei Hongxing's view, architecture is a loyal witness to history. The ever-changing architecture represents the changes of the Shenzhen era, which is also his original intention to shoot architecture.
In 1983, Wei Dongsheng followed his father Wei Hongxing to Shenzhen. That year, he was only 13 years old. Since then, both work and life, the father and son are on Shennan Avenue. They witnessed the changes in Shenzhen, and also recorded the butterfly changes in Shenzhen with the lens.
In Shenzhen, there are also many photographers who are both builders and experienced in Shenzhen.
1. Luohu
Luohu District is the earliest developed urban area in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone. In the 1980s and 1990s, Luohu built the height of Shenzhen with the China World Trade Center and Diwang Building. Local commercial banks have promoted the rapid rise of Shenzhen.
In 1989, Luohu, Shenzhen. Photo by Wei Hongxing
In 2013, Luohu Guangzhou Shenzhen Railway. Photo by Wei Hongxing
"I watched China World Trade Center's first tallest building in China, with a 51-story building and a 1-story building in three days. The speed of Shenzhen was called from then on. After China World Trade Center came together, the whole Shenzhen has been along Shennan Avenue Towards Futian, the northern part of Futian Building slowly rose. "Wei Hongxing said.
As the city with the deepest commercial background and the most active business atmosphere in Shenzhen, consumption has always been Luohu's "ace card".
Wei Dongsheng recalled that since Luohu was close to Hong Kong, many early trading companies gathered here. People in Shenzhen like to have fun and entertainment in Luohu because there are high-end restaurants, shopping malls and wholesale markets. To this day, Luohu is still the fashion vane of Shenzhen.
2. Huaqiangbei Business District
Huaqiangbei Business District is located in Futian District, Shenzhen. Its predecessor was an industrial area mainly producing electronics, communications, and electrical products. With economic development, Huaqiangbei gradually became China's largest electronic market and the largest electronic product distribution center in Asia. .
In 1988, SEG Electronics Group set up the country ’s first electronic product trading market dedicated to the sale of domestic and foreign electronic components on the first floor of the SEG Industrial Building-SEG Electronics Supporting Market (the predecessor of SEG Electronics Market), which laid Huaqiang North's "Jianghu" status as the first city of electronic trading in China.
In 2000, Shenzhen Futian Huaqiangbei SEG Plaza was completed, and the electronic street industry led by the SEG electronics market was actively developed. Photo by Wei Hongxing
In 2012, Huaqiangbei Electronics Market. Photo by Wei Hongxing
Wei Dongsheng pointed out that initially the SEG electronic supporting market was only one floor in size, with dozens of counters covering an area of about 1,000 square meters, and later expanded to the second floor, third floor and even the entire building. Electronic component wholesale enterprises near Dongguan and Huizhou both purchase from Huaqiangbei and continue to sell in Huaqiangbei after processing.
"The rise of Huaqiangbei relies on entrepreneurial spirit, and many people work from small counters to e-commerce companies. Many high-tech enterprise talents in Shenzhen grew up in Huaqiangbei." Wei Dongsheng said.
It is reported that Tencent's first office was in Building 403, Huaqiangbei SEG Technology Pioneer Park. Ma Huateng, chairman and chief executive of Tencent's board of directors, mentioned in a speech, "China's IT is going out from Huaqiangbei, and there was no Zhongguancun at that time."
3. Shanghai Hotel
The Shanghai Hotel, built in 1983, was the landmark building of this city in the early days of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone. Its east is the urban area and the west is the suburb. It is known as the "coordinates" of the Shenzhen city.
In 1984, the Shanghai Hotel under construction in Futian. Photo by Wei Hongxing
In 2008, Shennan Avenue Shanghai Hotel Area. Photo by Wei Hongxing
"Waiting for me in the Shanghai Hotel" is a familiar sentence for many old Shenzhen people. In the era when there was no subway, the bus station of Shanghai Hotel was an important place for people to come together in Shenzhen.
"In the early 1980s, I went to Futian Middle School near the Shanghai Hotel and passed by every day. There were red mud on both sides of the road at that time. Some factories were being built, and some land was flattened. I was preparing to build a house. Piling. Firecrackers should be used in any building that is capped, and firecrackers can be as long as the building is tall. "Wei Dongsheng said.
Today's Shanghai Hotel is already in Huaqiangbei Commercial Street and Shenzhen CBD in the central area of Shenzhen. The tall buildings around it are gathered. It is difficult to imagine that it was a muddy place.
4. Mawan Port
In 1979, the Central Government approved the establishment of the Shekou Industrial Zone. The "first sound of gunfire" in China's reform and opening up began in Shekou.
Above: Mawan Port Area in 2012 Bottom Image: Photograph by Shenzhen Zonghao Photographed by Chen Zonghao in Mawan Port Area in 1985
"Shenzhen's reform and opening up began in Shekou, and Shekou started with the sound of the mountain gun. I experienced the 1985 mountain gun, splitting the mountains and reclaiming the sea to build the Mawan Port. That was my first memory of Shenzhen." Huang Ling, a second-level inspector of the Zhi Office and director of the Shenzhen Fangzhi Museum, said.
In 1985, Huang Ling followed her husband from her hometown of Hainan via Guangzhou to Shenzhen by train, when her work unit was at Nanyou Group. In 1986, Huang Ling's historical organization from the big enterprise "self-investment net" to "Qingshui Yamen", as the historian of Shenzhen, worked for more than 30 years, witnessing Shenzhen's growth from a border agricultural county to a modern international metropolis Development footprint.
Huang Ling recalled that when she first came to Shenzhen, Mawan Port was still a vast ocean, and now the surrounding area is almost continuous.
5. "Ruzi Cow" Statue
In front of the courtyard of the Shenzhen Municipal Party Committee, there is a sculpture of "Ruzi Niu", and some people call it a "Wild Cow". The cow gave a heavy load, and a bunch of decaying tree roots were pulled up behind the cow. In the eyes of Shenzhen people, "Ruzi Niu" represents the spirit of Shenzhen.
Shenzhen Shunbin Building under construction in 1981 Photographed by Shenzhen Fangzhi Hall
In 1986, the sculpture of Niu Tangguisheng in front of the office building and building of the Shenzhen Municipal Committee Photograph by Shenzhen Fangzhiguan
Pan He, creator of Ruzi Niu, said in an interview with the media: "I am not a cow. Tens of thousands of bulldozers on the road are all wasteland cattle; the roots behind the wasteland cattle are not roots, they are backward. Consciousness, bureaucratic consciousness, small peasant consciousness, backward consciousness, intricate roots, if these roots are not uprooted, there will be no development in the future. This cow has a forefoot that is kneeling, and it is said that this generation of people is bowing down. "
When the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone was founded, the Shekou Industrial Zone relied on the spirit of pioneering cattle to draw blueprints on a piece of white paper.
Huang Ling pointed out that in the early days of Shenzhen, if there is no spirit of constantly breaking through the shackles of the old system, there will be no Shenzhen today. "Leaders must dare to make decisions, dare to invade, and dare not to lose their hats; builders in all walks of life also need to have this spirit, because every field is new and no one has done it.
6. "Time is money, efficiency is life" slogan
As an "experimental field" for reform and opening up, Shekou Industrial Zone has initiated many innovations in systems and concepts.
For example, the familiar “time is money, efficiency is life”, which was first proposed in 1979 by the Shekou Industrial Park, reflects the Shenzhen people ’s “striving for efficiency” and is hailed as “the first cry to break through the ideological imprisonment” spring thunder".
In 1984, the slogan "Time is money, efficiency is life". Photo courtesy of Xu Youzhu, Shenzhen Local Museum
On February 24, 2015, a man walked through the "Time is Money, Efficiency is Life" card in Shenzhen Shekou Time Square. Photo courtesy of Shenzhen Local History Museum
"Shenzhen in the 1990s, the pace of work is really fast in China. There are many business companies near Shennan Avenue. They often go to and from customs ports. There are many people walking on Shennan Avenue during the day. The pace is very fast. However, Compared with the original, Shenzhen now works faster and has more people. "Wei Dongsheng said.
It is worth mentioning that, in addition to "time is money, efficiency is life", the innovative concepts of Xingyu Shekou "empty talk about misleading the country and working hard to rejuvenate the country" and "dare to be the first in the world" have also become the most influential in the reform and opening up process Strong voice of the times.
7. Huanggang Port
Huanggang Port is a port connecting Shenzhen City and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is located in the south of Shenzhen City and is the only port in Shenzhen that is open 24/7.
In 1983, Huanggang Port Futian Village, Shenzhen. Photo by Wei Hongxing
In 2004, Huanggang Port. Photo by Wei Hongxing
The construction of the Huanggang Port started in May 1985. After it was approved by the State Council of the People ’s Republic of China on November 30, 1988, it was opened to the public. On January 27, 2003, a 24-hour customs clearance was implemented.
The completion of the Huanggang Port strengthens the transportation links between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, and promotes the economic development of Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangdong Province.
"The trucks in Shenzhen used to run to Huanggang Port, especially on Huanggang Road. I often heard rumbling noises," Wei Dongsheng said.
Not long ago, the construction project of temporary travel inspection site at Huanggang Port has been officially completed and handed over, which will meet the daily customs clearance requirement of 30,000 people.
8. Shenzhen Futian District
The central area of Shenzhen is located in Futian, surrounded by four urban arterial roads, Binhe Avenue, Lianhua Road, Caitian Road and Xinzhou Road. The planned total construction area is 7.5 million square meters, including the southern area, northern area and Lianhuashan Park.
Futian in the central area of Shenzhen in the 1990s and Wei Hongxing in the central area in 2002
Wei Dongsheng recalled that during the time he was in high school, Futian, a central district of Shenzhen, was also "one horse flat river". On rainy days, walking on the road was always covered with mud, but the scale of the factory construction was large, and there were more and more financial industries gathered around.
Since the establishment of Futian District in Shenzhen in 1990, Futian has grown from a piece of farmland and tidal flats into a modern, international and innovative urban center. In the first half of 2019, the financial industry in Futian District, Shenzhen achieved an added value of 67.581 billion yuan, accounting for 33% of the GDP.
9. Nanyou Development Zone
Shenzhen Nanyou (Group) Co., Ltd. was established on August 8, 1984 and is responsible for the comprehensive development, construction and overall management of the 23.01 square kilometer area (Nanyou Development Zone) west of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone.
According to the retired employees of the Nanyou Group, when the Nanyou Development Zone was first established in 1984, in addition to the Houhai Village of less than 200 people, it was a barren land on the Deep Bay. The establishment of Nanyou Group has greatly accelerated the development of the development zone.
In 1994, after 10 years of hard work, Shenzhen Nanyou Group Co., Ltd. turned the Nanyou Development Zone, which was established on the barren beach, into the golden coast of western Shenzhen.
Nanyou Development Zone carries the memories of an urban area, an era and a group of "pioneers".
In 1994, Nanyou Development Zone. Photo courtesy of Zhang Xunwen, Shenzhen Local History Museum
In 2018, Nanyou Development Zone has a new look. Photo courtesy of Shenzhen Local History Museum
For many Shenzhen migrant workers, Shenzhen has almost become their second hometown. They work and live here, watching the city slowly change.
Huang Ling said that before the Spring Festival, Shenzhen was almost an empty city with few cars. Now everyone is living and working in Shenzhen, and more people stay here for the Chinese New Year.
Looking back on the development of the past 40 years, Shenzhen has undergone tremendous changes.
Huang Ling pointed out that since its establishment in Shenzhen, Shenzhen has been a city with a sense of mission, moving forward with its mission. Over the past 40 years, a batch of migrant workers have come to Shenzhen. Each of them has motivation and passion. Their bit by bit contribution contributed to the greatness of the city.
"Shenzhen has a bigger pattern than the previous 40 years, especially in today ’s world, which is facing a major change that has not been seen in a hundred years. Based on the development of the past forty years, Shenzhen already has enough confidence, enough conditions and enough spirit. Come to greet the big changes in the world and lead the way for the future of China. "Huang Ling said.
Author: Sunqiu Xia