Change Everything You Think About Modern China
Forget clichéd assertions that all Asians look the same. Many Americans look at China and see a rising economic monolith set against a cultural monotone: After all, the harsh censorship of China’s government must suppress individual expression and creativity, right? And the only way for an oppressed Chinese citizen to create meaningful art is to violently break with the system, right?
Wrong. Today’s China is home to some of the most breathtaking innovations in contemporary art — art that blurs the lines of East and West, of the past and present, even of the so-called system itself. A new exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art proves that not only is creativity possible under censorship; it can even flourish.
Art is the cry of a people saying, “We are here, we are living in this world and grappling with it just like you.”
It would be impossible to come out of Ink Art, which runs from Decemeber 11 to April 6, and still hold dangerous assumptions about contemporary Chinese culture. The landmark exhibition of Chinese contemporary art showcases spectacular works from 35 artists including Gu Wenda, Xiu Anxiong, Xu Bing, Yang Yongliang, Ai Weiwei, Wang Donling, and Zhang Yu. All of these artists were born and educated in China. Many still work and thrive there…
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