Society never advances, said American writer Ralph Waldo Emerson. This notion is reflected in the current exhibition by French photographer Gérard Rancinan, whose intricate pictures show that, no matter how much society changes, we are still faced with the same basic problems.

Some eight years ago, Rancinan saw a picture in a newspaper of a wrecked raft on a Spanish beach. The raft had been carrying immigrants from Africa.

The small black-and-white picture reminded him of the 19th century painting The Raft of the Medusa by Théodore Géricault, which is in the Louvre in Paris. The painting captures the tragedy of desperate passengers, who were transferred from a grounded frigate called the Medusa to a shabby raft, enduring starvation and dehydration before rescue.

The Raft of Illusions by French photographer Gérard Rancinan Photos: Courtesy of Shanghai Himalayas Museum

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A Marvellous World

For Rancinan, the picture in the newspaper raised the issues of migration in modern society. "I see nothing change. All is repetition, all is always the same," said the photographer, who started taking pictures at 15 and has been the winner of four World Press Photo prizes for his coverage of such diverse events as earthquakes, riots and the Olympic Games.

On the third floor of Shanghai Himalayas Museum in Pudong New Area, Rancinan's giant photograph The Raft of Illusions, which was inspired by The Raft of the Medusa, invites visitors to enter into a discussion with the photographer on modern issues such as immigration.

In the photo, a battered raft on a black sea carries a number of wearied figures, all in ragged clothes. Some of them have passed out while some others still hold out hope as they look desperately at images of Hollywood and the Eiffel Tower in the unknown distance.

The props, costumes and setting for the photo shoot were prepared by Rancinan, and the vivid scene was made using one shot, without montage or any editing with software.

The Raft of Illusions won Rancinan great acclaim in Europe and the US. He has continued his discussion of society with theater-style photographs, which later on became his The Trilogy of the Moderns series.

Divided into Metamorphoses, Hypotheses and Wonderful World, the trilogy is a collaboration between Rancinan and French journalist and writer Caroline Gaudriault. Rancinan shoots the pictures, while Gaudriault talks with people, often experts in some specific fields related to the photographs, and writes books about their dialogues. The books are also on show at the exhibition.

He addresses a number of issues in a comic way in the works. In Metamorphoses, the modern desire for freedom and democracy as well as eternal physical beauty and luxury goods, is revealed through re-imagining classic paintings. In Hypotheses he discusses the disappearance of languages, values and cultural diversity. In Wonderful World he uses pop culture figures such as Mickey Mouse, Marilyn Monroe and Andy Warhol to address consumerism and the infantilization of society.

"Human beings don't accept the responsibility, and don't want to see the reality, because [in this way] life is more simple," Rancinan said. "You're born, you die, and between you have to be okay … then you think you should have a mobile phone, you should have Prada, etc."

Metamorphoses was presented for the first time at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris in 2009. Hypotheses was displayed at a former church in Paris in 2011, while in 2012, the whole trilogy was presented for the first time at La Triennale di Milano.

China is the third stop of the trilogy's world tour after Slovakia. The exhibition will be slightly different in each country, depending on the culture and the venue. About 40 photographs from the whole collection were chosen for display in the Himalayas Museum. Also on view are the props and costumes used in the shoots, and a video recording the process of the project.

Date: Until November 2, 10 am to 6 pm (closed Mondays)

Venue: 3/F, Shanghai Himalayas Museum 上海喜玛拉雅美术馆3楼

Address: 869 Yinghua Road

樱花路869号

Admission: 60 yuan ($9.79), 30 yuan for students

Call 5033-9801 for details