Lecture 10: Late Modern Chinese Art

1. Review: the 1st half of the 20th century: Western Influence

2. Historical Background: Social and cultural changes
The 2nd half of the 20th century:
Western influence and Chinese response
divergence vs. confluence

3. 1949-1978, and 1979-1989

Critical Realism, Formalism, and the Avant-Garde
Since 1976: Realism and figurative art
1979-1989: the Avant-Gard under Western Influence

4. the 1990s: Postmodern and Conceptual Art

Contemporary art: globalization and commercialization

5. 21st Century
Critical Realism
He Duolin
Youth (1984)

Luo Zhongli
Father (1980)
Formalism: Wu Guanzhong (1980)

“Formal Beauty” and “Abstract Beauty”

 Formalism: Wu Guanzhong (1919-2010)

What is “Formalism”?
a communication model:
Context→ (artist/author→ text/image ← reader/viewer) ← Context
the Avant-Garde
1979: the “Stars”
1989 Exhibition: Avant-Garde China
1989 Exhibition: Avant-Garde China

What is Conceptual art?

Temporal: recent 30 or so years
Conceptual: challenging the establishment
 1989 Exhibition: Avant-Garde China

Xiao Lu
Dialogue (1985-11989)
The 1990s Postmodernism
New Generation academic art

Liu Xiaodong and Yu Hong

fixation to realism
The 1990s Postmodernism

Kitsch Art: Liu Wei

sarcasm and stupidity

Postmodern Art in the 1990s
Cynical Realism, Political Pop
The 1990s Postmodernism
Cynicism, political pop

Yue Minjun
21st Century
Contemporary Art
Globalized commercial art
with political implication

Zhang Xiaogang

Zeng Fanzhi
Chinese Artists in the West

Xu Bing:
Deconstructing language

New English Calligraphy

Heavenly Writing
Xu Bing:
Cultural Animal

art for the people

and cultural politics
21st Century: Chinese Artists in the West
Cai Guoqiang
21st Century: Chinese Artists in the West
Gu Wenda
21st Century: Chinese Artists in the West
Chen Danqing
21st Century: Chinese Artists in the West
Chen Danqing
21st Century: Chinese Artists in the West
Chen Danqing
21st Century: Sex and Violence in Art
21st Century: Works of Art Students
21st Century: Works of Art Educators

Duolin He:
Youth (1984, 2014)