Perhaps artists like to think of themselves as harbingers of social change, at least think they like to imagine themselves on the vanguard of something. In China, they seem more like backseat drivers. However, the world’s fasting urbanizing nation is heaving forward in myriad expressions, and relentlessly posing challenges to the entire globe with a host of issues that will shape the next decade.Urban China is a magazine that has hovered on the fringes of the art world since it was founded four years, it examines various urban issues in themed monthly issues, featuring intellectuals, artists and social scientists writing on topics such as Chinese creativity, education, migration, or Chinatowns. URBAN CHINA: Work in Progress (Timezone8, 2009), is a new publication co-edited by magazine founder Jiang Jun and Brendan McGetrick that seems to reiterate the supremacy of the urban machine over the artist’s ego, as the book itself grew out of a series of questions that emerged from UC’s participation in Documenta 12 (2007). (more…)

Recently re-reading Yin Jinan’s two critical responses to the Chinese art world, “Knocking on the door alone” (1993) and “Step-motherism” (2000), two books that should be noted for their critical response and theoretical interpretations on the world of Chinese contemporary art. Both books are published by Sanlian Bookstore, are in their 4th and 2nd printing respectively, and have received much attention from the Chinese-reading world.

Yin Jinan wrote “Knocking on the door alone” as a response to the urgings of many who thought that his position as chair of the Central Academy of Fine Art’s art history department and as a “close-up” observer, warranted a publication.  The second book “Post-motherism” (will follow in separate review) is a compilation of years of art criticism published in his column in duzhe magazine 《读者》also entitled “knocking”, duzikoumen “独自叩门”. The implied meaning of this title is: when we look at art we are always seeking a personal interpretation, and our individual experiences inform our reading.

The essays range from 1988, in an essay on the joint exhibition of Lu Shengzhong and Xu Bing at the National Museum of Art, “新潮美术的转折点” (The turning point of the New Wave), to 1992 (in dialogue with Sui Jianguo). Yin’s connections with art are very influenced by his proximity to the art academy, and to many artists who were making important names, such as Liu Xiaodong and Yu Hong, Wang Guangyi, Huang Yongping,  Sun Xinping and a host of other young painters whom he calls the “New Generation Painters.” These were the emerging generation of artists who were establishing a new POV, moving away from the collectivism of the 1970s and 1980s and depicting personal experiences. Yin’s style is clear and dry, funny at times but aggressively confident when critical.

The book also includes ample writing on Xu Bing,  the outrageously well-attended first nude oil painting exhibition in early 1989, and writings on the China / Avantgarde exhibition in 1989, on Chinese modernism and more. Posted below is an essay from this book on “New Generation Artists”, it was translated for a forthcoming publication on Chinese contemporary art from the Museum of Modern Art.  To read Chinese version, please switch languages on the upper right hand.

新生代与近距离

文／尹吉男

90年代初的中国现代艺术具有特殊的时间意义。当记忆情境与现实景观碰撞在一起的时刻，任何人都能直观地比较出属于艺术史范畴的基本素材。文学界的”散文时期”恰好与美术界的没有艺术宣言的写实时期相对应，平静的生活沉入与此前火爆躁动的观念迷狂构成巨大文化反差。对传统艺术观和新潮艺术观的反省与质疑，首先不是来自理论界，而是来自创作界。90、91两年的一些引人瞩目的艺术个展和联展无声地表达了非常肯定的艺术态度，一批60年代出生的年轻艺术家应运而生。主创者们在年龄上的特点也成为我们定性近期艺术现实的一个重要方面。当我开始控制性地使用”新生代”和”近距离”这两个概念时, 我考虑到它们具有随时空发生微妙变易的活性蕴含。

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CHINA: MUSEUMS
Scala, 384 pages, Feb 2009

Miriam Clifford, Cathy Giangrande and Antony White, all with backgrounds in art history and archeology, have reportedly spent four years combing through China’s hundreds of museums in a search for the most appealing. The result is this in-depth guide to China’s museums that opens up new territories for English-speaking audiences, presumably Western travelers, but for that special, more adventuresome set interested in witnessing China’s cultural growth from a multifaceted perspective. “China: Museums” includes major players, such as the Forbidden City, as well as Chinese equivalents of what could be called “Roadside museums.” Imagine the Squished Penny Museum of Washington DC, translate that into the Beijing Tap Water Museum for an idea of the scale of the many museums referenced here; but then again, our authors have carefully weeded through the deep waters of China’s bowuguan (“museum,” a term that could also be literally broken down to mean an “establishment of ample objects”) to bring us the very best, most socially relevant and worthy selection of China’s ancient memorials, monuments and culturally revealing sites. They prove that lurking behind the Chinglish placards of hundreds of museums across China, there is much to be learned.

With site culled through our authors’ trained, and scrutinizing eyes, “China Museums” is not only a portrait of a nation’s burgeoning museum culture, but a sketchy outline of the earnest efforts of China’s curators or enthusiasts, and a semblance of an infrastructure where we might have assumed there was none. Of course, many Western readers cannot help but judge on appearances when confronted with the widespread curatorial practices Xerox copies glued to walls, or shabby facades and dust-laden velvet curtains, even the sci-fi inspired architecture of modern China can be a turn off. (more…)

Some of us look forever, others never seek––perhaps they’re already found “ME.” New September 2008 publication is a compilation of short texts and artwork images documenting China’s new generation of “Post 70s” artists. Included within are 30 artists, each artist includes a short introduction, three full pages of color images, and up-to-date artist resumes, there is even a photograph of each artist, in the old school, i.d. photo style.

These artists included are among the most outstanding of their generation, they represent Mainland China’s up-and-coming talent in the visual arts. Although often called the “Post 70s” generation, the artists here are mostly born after 1975. The book is a compliment to the exhibition of the same name, curated by Fang Fang (art director of Star Gallery and 2006 exhibition “Naughty Kids”), but is meant to stand on its own, and become a resource tool for those interested in this younger generation of artists, a browsing book.

If you’re like everyone else I know, you’re thinking: What does the name mean?

After spending a summer on this book, researching these artists, writing texts, translating and pondering the very same question I can only say: It means what ever you want it to. Whatever looking for you might entail. May you find it within!

Artists: Ouyang Chun / Li Jikai / Wei Jia / Qin Qi / Huang Yuxing / Xiong Yu / Wen Ling / Wang Guangle / Liu Ding / Li Hui / Qiu Jiongjiong / Song Kun / Wang Yaqiang / Liang Yuanwei / Cao Fei / Wang Yifan / Li Chaoxiong / Chen Ke / Xu Maomao / Jia Aili / Gao Yu / Li Qing / Qiu Xin / Wen Chuan / Yan Cong / Ha Migua / Chen Fei / Jin Nv / unmask

Book design: Liu Zhizhi MEWE

Authors: Lee Ambrozy / Jing Xiaomeng / Gong Jian / Huang Shan / Helen Li / Pauline J Yao / Chang Chang

“Socialism is Great” is a coming-of-age tale to be sure, but also a good example of memoir writing from an exceptional person living through some extraordinary times. “Socialism is Great” tells of things great and small: a girl becoming a woman and China shedding its socialist shell. It opens doors on a frugal family and its persistence in life, and the gates of the state-owned factory class as it plods to extinction. Along the way are lovable and despicable characters, all drawn to–or repelled by–our heroine Lijia as she careens through her own mind, trying as she must to keep her ambitions and lust contained behind “the strangest pair [of glasses she] could find in town.”  

“Socialism is Great” is a fast read, is passionate and hopeful. Happily, unlike many other memoirs from China it doesn’t end with an escape abroad. In this sense, it captures the spirit of the 80s, as the heroine’s forward momentum brings readers to new depths and acts of bravery, she brings to life a whole new side of China, all without wallowing in self-pity. As she matures, she comes into mature experiences that make this book inappropriate for young audiences, but which definitely left me surprised at the depth of emotion of factory workers and “simple” laborers all. 

All in all, this is a new voice to enrich the canon of memoirs from China, it marks the advancement away from the reminiscing over the cultural revolution, and represents one among China’s newest generation of international, accomplished writers.

Book Talk: “Socialism Is Great!” by Zhang LijiaWed June 18, 19:30-21:00
Venue: CCC Learning Centre, Chinese Culture Club, Anjialou, No.29, Liangmaqiao Road, Chaoyang District.
Price: RMB 20 (symbolic charge for drinks and snack) (more…)

3030 New Graphic Design in China is a panoramic view of China’s new generation of graphic designers packed in a little book. Representatives from around the nation are present, and make subtle claims on a “Chinese aesthetic” with new designs notions ranging from notions of character typography, “play” on characters, experimenting with traditional bindings, and the reincarnation of nostalgic papers, textures, and other motifs from the 80s (in the case of this young generation).On the whole, the group collected here shows an inclination for white space and blocky abstract forms;  perhaps their manipulation of the English alphabet and words reveals a willingness to experiment with shapes and form that push the medium further than a native speaker might dare.Perhaps the books greatest selling point: the inspiration of seeing this highly productive group of designers experimenting with styles in a nation where the mere notion of graphic design and advertising are so new. Many art academies boast graphic design programs that are less than a decade old, and represented here is a group of the first graduates and the pioneers of the field on the mainland.With a rich vocabulary of historical-cultural references, the designers featured in 3030 New Graphic Design in China are at no loss to use the typical “Chinoiserie” that once distinguished works from mainland China. Happily, despite some tropism, many of these China born-bred-educated graphic designers are showing great promise for achieving distinctly unique, yet international styles. This book is a decent reflection of them, although by no means a reflection of what you will see streetside. With any hope, that will change in the coming years.For more images and an interview with the editor, visit PingMag

坏孩子天空介绍了新兴的中国艺人。不要把他们看成是行为不轨的，他们已经成为中国的创造力的源泉。处身于不断变化的中国艺术界的他们的想象力也是多样化 的，将主题以卡通风格在超大的画布上或者笔记本上的胡乱素描来展现。本书以大众访谈的方式展现了“70年代后期艺术新生”，“商品时代艺术”与西方对同话 题的理解是那么的相似。本书由刘治治主编，编辑方式带有戏弄的效果，呈现出小坏蛋的形象，保证每一本“坏孩子天空”都能成为别致的污迹模糊的原作。

［我知道，这本已经很旧… 但它就是70后的经典！我期待房方下一本关于此年代的艺术家：“找自己”］

Editors Uta GROSENICK and Caspar SCHUBBE
MERRELL publisher,
Available at Timezone 8, 420 RMB

Wherever art works are exchanging hands for millions of dollars, the publishing industry will follow––foolproof publishing logic. Thus China Art Book was born, and is the broadest survey of Chinese artists to date, including 80 attention-grabbing contemporary artists. Although introductions are brief, they are included in German, English, and Chinese… suggesting that this is not reading for merely potential collectors, but hobbyists, and perhaps artists themselves, in these ways it sets a standard in publishing on the field. The book is filled with colour images for each artist and soft bound, it was edited by acclaimed Art Now editor Uta Grosenick and her Beijing counterpart Carol Lu (Lu Yinghua), the team recruited local curators to vote on artists included and contribute to introductory texts––a democratic process¬ no doubt. Why, then, did the book inspire such a confrontational and suspicious crowd at its launch last month at its Beijing launch? Despite the many reasons, Uta hinted at a second edition . . .

originally published in Urbane, February 2008