New Kids On The Block An Exploration Into The New Chinese Collectors As Producers Of Meaning In Chinese Contemporary Art

Seminar paper from the year 2012 in the subject Art - Extra-European art, grade: A+, University of California, Los Angeles, course: Contemporary Chinese Art Seminar, language: English, abstract: This term paper explores the increasing presence of Chinese collectors of contemporary Chinese art. It is driven by the idea that collectors ‘produce’ or cultivate meaning in the larger canon of art history. Based on Belk’s analysis of collecting as a consumption activity (1991), the motivations of these collectors and the resulting implications for contemporary art are investigated. The development of patronage and art appreciation throughout China’s tumultuous past, and the current barren cultural landscape have given rise to a collector who differs greatly to the traditional model. At the same time, it is hypothesized that there exists a more deeper-lying uniquely Chinese altruism next to the amalgam of social refinement, identity, nationalistic and financial motives. On the basis of this, is suggested that whereas the current nature of collecting contemporary art in China does not yet demonstrate the high level of critical thinking and sophistication that would be beneficial for the development of the contemporary art scene, there nevertheless lies potential for a more healthy development in the years to come.

How Chinese is contemporary Chinese art? Treasured by collectors, critics, and art world cognoscenti, this art developed within an avant-garde that looked West to find a language to strike out against government control. Traditionally, Chinese artistic expression has been related to the structure and function of the Chinese language and the assumptions of Chinese natural cosmology. Is contemporary Chinese art rooted in these traditions or is it an example of cultural self-colonization? Contributors to this volume address this question, going beyond the more obvious political and social commentaries on contemporary Chinese art to find resonances between contemporary artistic ideas and the indigenous sources of Chinese cultural self-understanding. Focusing in particular on the acclaimed artist Xu Bing, this book looks at how he and his peers have navigated between two different cultural sites to establish a third place, a place from which to appropriate Western ideas and use them to address centuries-old Chinese cultural issues within a Chinese cultural discourse.

A unique and visionary generation of young Chinese artists are coming to prominence in the art world - just as China cements its place as the second largest art market on the planet. Building on the new frontiers opened up by the Chinese artists of the late 1980s and 1990s, artists such as Ai Wei Wei who came to the West and became household names, this new generation are provocative, exciting and bold. But what does it mean to be a Chinese artist today? And how can we better understand their work? Here, renowned critic Barbara Pollack presents the first book to tell the story of how these Chinese millennials, fast becoming global art superstars, negotiate their cultural heritage, and what this means for China's impact on the future of global culture. Many young Chinese artists have declared they are "not Chinese, but global" - this book investigates just what that means for China, the art market, and the world. Brand new Art from China is the first collection to showcase the dynamic new art coming from Chinese artists, and features full-colour photos and video stills throughout - with many works being published in book-form for the first time. Featuring an in-depth interview with Zhang Xiaogang, probably the most well-known artist in China itself, whose sombre portraits of Chinese families during the Cultural Revolution sell for as much as $12 million at auction, alongside unparalleled access to the tastemakers of today's art scene, Brand New Art from China is the essential guide to Chinese contemporary art today - its vision, values and aesthetics.

"Featuring 70 works in various media--paintings, calligraphy, photographs, woodblock prints, video, and sculpture--that were created during the past three decades, Ink Art: Past as Present in Contemporary China will demonstrate how China's ancient pattern of seeking cultural renewal through the reinterpretation of past models remains a viable creative path. Although all of the artists have transformed their sources through new modes of expression, visitors will recognize thematic, aesthetic, or technical attributes in their creations that have meaningful links to China's artistic past. The exhibition will be organized thematically into four parts and will include such highlights as Xu Bing's dramatic Book from the Sky (ca. 1988), an installation that will fill an entire gallery; Family Tree (2000), a set of vivid photographs documenting a performance by Zhang Huan in which his facial features--and his identity--are obscured gradually by physiognomic texts that are inscribed directly onto his face; and Map of China (2006) by Ai Weiwei, which is constructed entirely of wood salvaged from demolished Qing dynasty temples." --

"A unique and visionary generation of young Chinese artists are coming to prominence in the art world - just as China cements its place as the second largest art market on the planet. Building on the new frontiers opened up by the Chinese artists of the late 1980s and 1990s, artists such as Ai Wei Wei who came to the West and became household names, this new generation are provocative, exciting and bold. But what does it mean to be a Chinese artist today? And how can we better understand their work? Here, renowned critic Barbara Pollack presents the first book to tell the story of how these Chinese millennials, fast becoming global art superstars, negotiate their cultural heritage."--Publisher's description.

This book provides an in-depth and thematic analysis of socially engaged art in Mainland China, exploring its critical responses to and creative interventions in China’s top-down, pro-urban, and profit-oriented socioeconomic transformations. It focuses on the socially conscious practices of eight art professionals who assume the role of artist, critic, curator, educator, cultural entrepreneur, and social activist, among others, as they strive to expose the injustice and inequality many Chinese people have suffered, raise public awareness of pressing social and environmental problems, and invent new ways and infrastructures to support various underprivileged social groups.

"The exhibition includes works by sixteen artists, who together present a spectrum of new Chinese art produced over the past four decades. In doing so, 'New networks' begins to explore how the narratives surrounding contemporary Chinese art are emerging within significant art collections across New Zealand and Australia"--First paragraph.

Edited and with text by Melissa Chiu.