 In 1908, Albert Kahn and his chauffeur embarked on a global trek to observe and absorb other cultures—an early “prototype” of the many photography missions Kahn would fund over the years. This program illustrates that formative round-the-world trip as well as the 1913 journey undertaken by photographer Stéphane Passet to China, Mongolia, and India. Viewers will encounter startling images of early-20th-century Manhattan, San Francisco, Tokyo, and Beijing, as well as views of nascent Rio de Janeiro and burgeoning Buenos Aires. Scenes from Tsarist Siberia, the Mongolian steppes, a Varanasi teeming with worshippers, and a camel-and-elephant caravan on the Khyber Pass reaffirm the spectacular value of Kahn’s grand project. A BBC/Musée Albert-Kahn (Département des Hauts-de-Seine—France) Co-production. (52 minutes)
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