Contemporary Chinese Art Hardcover by Wu Hung

Product Details

• Publisher: Thames and Hudson (2014-10-14)
• Language: English
• Paperback: 456 pages
• ISBN-13: 9780500239209
• Item Weight: 2571.91 grams
• Dimensions: 30.48 x 24.13 x 4.06 cm

The first and only comprehensive survey of contemporary Chinese art, one of the most vital and expanding sectors of the global art world today

From its underground genesis during the Cultural Revolution (1966–76), contemporary Chinese art has become a dynamic and hugely influential force in a globalized art world. In this first major introduction to the topic, Wu Hung provides an accessible, focused, and much-needed narrative of the development of Chinese art across all media from the 1970s to the 2000s, a time span characterized by radical social, political, and economic change in China. The book is a richly illustrated and easy-to-navigate chronological survey that considers contemporary Chinese art both in the context of China’s history and in a global arena. Wu Hung explores the emergence of contemporary art—as opposed to officially sanctioned art—in the public sphere after the Cultural Revolution; the mobilization by young artists and critics of a nationwide avant-garde movement in the mid-1980s; the re-emphasis on individual creativity in the late 1980s and the heightened spirit of experimentation of the 1990s; and the more recent identification of Chinese artists, such as Ai Weiwei, as global citizens who create works for an international audience.

About the Author

Wu Hung is the Founder and Director of the Center for the Art of East Asia at the University of Chicago and the Harrie A. Vanderstappen Distinguished Service Professor in Chinese Art History at the Department of Art History and the Department of East Asian Studies and Civilizations at the same university.