There is one shop in Shanghai’s Duolun cultural street that’s worth a special mention – Dashanghai. As you stroll down the street it’s very hard to miss – a little shop that takes you back in time with all sorts of everyday historical artifacts – records, posters, appliances. A terrific little place.
Lonely Planet recommends :
This nicely restored, if a little twee, street of fine old houses (Fili – Duolun), just off North Sichuan Rd, was once home to several of China’s most famous writers (as well as several Kuomintang generals), when the road was known as Doulean Rd. Today it is lined with art supply stores, curio shops, galleries, teahouses and cafés, as well as statues of the writers Lu Xun and Guo Moruo.
The main appeal of the street is its galleries and antique shops, including […] Dashanghai (181 Duolun Rd; 多伦路181号), a marvellous deluge of Mao-era badges and posters, old records, photos, books, typewriters and assorted Shanghai bric-a-brac from the decadent days. With a bit of exploration you are bound to dig up something.
The surprising thing in there, IMHO, were the vintage 30s Shanghai posters. I had no idea Shanghai was so open minded back then, with semi-nude girls hints of sexy type of posters. Here’s a good example :
And lots of other posters…
Obviously, we can’t do without a few Mao portraits…
And some of those odd looking ads…
The person behind the concept is this next guy on the right, who was delighted with the fact that I’m an Israeli capable of a conversation in Mandarin. He showed me some of the stuff there, asked me to sign my name in Hebrew, and helped me with some of the Jewish history of the neighborhood.
Take a look at some of the stuff he’s got tucked in there…
I looked up some of the posters I saw in Dashanghai from back then. Take a look at those wonderful vintage posters. You gotta love these…