The 2001 Pingyao International Photography Festival

    Originated in 2001, the Pingyao International Photography Festival (PIP) was held in Pingyao, Shanxi , China from September 20th to 30th of 2001. A total of 165 photographers hailing from 16 countries and regions such as France , USA and Spain and photography lovers from China and abroad paid 40,000 visits to the festival. Over 20 photo trade deals were done between photographers and photo agencies.

    This is the first high-profile international photography festival ever held in China . Prior to the festival, we had done our homeworkon some international photography festivals, gaining a full understanding of how a photography festival would be run. In 2001 French Ambassador to China Mr. Pierre Morel and his wife attended the opening ceremony. Ms. Agnes de GouvionSaint-Cyr, Director of the National Photographic Center under the Cultural Ministry of France, also attended the opening ceremony, and some of the activities. Distinguished photographers like Marc Riboud, Martine Franck, Susan Meiselas from Magnum Picture Agency participated in the PIP. During the period of the estival, hundreds of Chinese photographers attended lectures given by internationally famous photographers at the master workshop   .