A project documenting the symbolic representations of the “Long March” and the people who live along it by photographer Zexuan Zeng. Zeng was born in China and began studying Visual Communication at Shanghai Normal University in 2015. After working as a freelance artist and designer, Zeng moved to Germany to study at the Academy of Media Arts Cologne. His artistic interest lies in the boundaries between documentary and fiction, and the self-referential nature of memory. “the internal crusade” is a reflection of Zeng’s upbringing and education. Born and raised in Ganzhou, Jiangxi, where the “Long March” begins, Zeng recalls how patriotic emblems and signs about the “Long March” were on almost every street corner. In the summer of 2024, Zeng undertook a two-month-long journey documenting the route:
“I began to realize that it evolved into a political tool for transforming individual suffering into a necessary sacrifice required by the collectives, with the meaning embedded: ‘All suffering is a journey, and all journeys must lead to success’…. We live in an illusion constructed by false tales, our intentions are revealed as some kind of task, and our experiences are hammered into certain struggles. The image of the god we worship is so blurred as to be weathered by the vulgar soul.”
Zexuan Zeng participated in our 2025 Booooooom Art & Photo Book Award and made our shortlist.