Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

18th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Travel
Peddler in Xi'an, China

This photo shows a peddler in an open-air market in Xi’an, China. My family was strolling through the market when I spotted the woman. Our visit to the market occurred during a two-week trip to explore China, my daughter’s birthplace. It was the first time we’d returned to China since we'd adopted her. Xi'an is a city of 12 million people in central China. The image reminds me of the famous Dorothea Lange photo depicting a destitute migrant woman and her children during the Great Depression. The Chinese woman’s hand is placed is the same spot as the woman in Lange’s photo, giving the woman a look of exhaustion.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 07.2019
Date Uploaded: 11.2020
Photo Location: Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China
Camera: ILCE-6000
Copyright: © Elliot Grossman