Undercurrent 惊涛骇浪
UNDERCURRENTS 惊涛骇浪
Not all turbulence announces itself on the surface.
UNDERCURRENTS 惊涛骇浪 is a photographic project by Zhu Mo 朱墨, developed over nine years between 2014 and 2023. Driving aimlessly along China's national highways, Zhu photographs the country's changing landscapes and the quiet fragments of life encountered along the way.
The photobook brings together roadside encounters, small towns, dwindling northern cities, abandoned forestry farms, rural life, and fleeting moments observed along the road. Through these seemingly ordinary scenes, a larger picture emerges of a country undergoing profound economic, environmental, and social change, currents of transformation moving beneath a seemingly calm surface.
The photobook translates this extended journey into an unconventional reading experience. Across nearly 400 pages, rough-cut edges and bright-blue pagination establish a continuous sense of time and movement.
More than 60 colour photographs appear as loose sheets of coated paper, individually hand-collated into the book. Removable and rearrangeable, these images allow the sequence to shift with each reading, echoing the unpredictability of landscapes encountered along the road.
With no captions or explanatory texts beyond a single opening epigraph, each photograph is left to speak for itself. Readers are invited to linger, make connections, and discover meaning without a prescribed narrative.
Through its considered design and open-ended structure, UNDERCURRENTS 惊涛骇浪 becomes more than a record of a changing landscape. It is an exploration of time, observation, and the forces that remain largely unseen, a reminder that the most profound transformations often happen beneath the surface.
Undercurrent 惊涛骇浪 has been officially shortlisted in the PhotoBook of the Year category at the 2026 Paris Photo–Aperture PhotoBook Awards, recognising its contribution to contemporary photobook publishing.
Book concept & design: @sunxiaoxi_xiaoxisun @supermodified_
+++
Language: English & Chinese
Format: Softcover | 390 pages
Dimension: 210 x 270mm | 1550g
Publication Year: First Edition | 2026
ISBN: 978-988-71352-6-5
Enjoy Free Delivery on Orders Over MYR 150 Within West Malaysia!
Shop your favorites and get free delivery when you spend MYR 150 or more. Available for delivery addresses within West Malaysia, so you can enjoy convenient shopping with no extra shipping costs!
Delivery lead times are 7-10 business days within Malaysia and 10-21 business days for other locations.
We have a 15-day return policy, which means you have 15-days after receiving your item to request a return.
To be eligible for a return, your item must be in the same condition that you received it, unworn or unused, with tags, and in its original packaging. You will also need the receipt or proof of purchase.
You can contact us at info@zontiga.com to request for a return. Once accepted, we will send you a link to return your item via shipping provider.
Items sent back to us without first requesting a return will NOT be accepted.
Some items on our site have limited stock. If an item is out of stock, you may have the option to pre-order it. Please note that delivery times for pre-ordered typically range from 4 to 8 weeks, unless specified otherwise.
We recommend checking product availability and delivery estimates before placing your order to ensure a smooth shopping experience. Thank you for your understanding and patience as we work to fulfill your order.
Support the Zontiga Photobook Library by co-donating a book! Use the code donate2library at checkout to purchase a book at a 50% discount—Zontiga will cover the other 50%.
Please note that the book won’t be shipped to you; it will be sent directly to our library. As a token of our appreciation, you’ll receive a thank you gift from us.
Your contribution helps us expand the library and make it accessible to more photography enthusiasts. Thank you for your generous support! To learn more about the Zontiga Photobook Library, click here!