Can All Chinese Art Be Called Post Socialist Art - Case Study Example

Can all Chinese art be called post socialist art? Introduction In reference to Athina and Schaffler-Gerken(2012), the Chinese art is usually referred to as any form of visual art that can be either modern or ancient practiced by Chinese artists. This paper will address the question of whether all Chinese art can be referred to as post-socialist art. It is therefore of great importance to come to terms with the meaning of post-socialist art as used in this context. Post-socialist art is also referred to as post-communist art. This refers to an analysis of art forms that originated in post-socialist countries around the world, with China making up the collection. Such countries are known to possess a form of art that has a nature different from the Western postmodern art. This essay will, therefore, investigate the nature of the relationship that exists between the ideas incorporated in the contemporary Chinese art and that which were expressed in the ancient Chinese philosophy. Such contemporary Chinese art brings about a dilemma in its nature at a time when contemporary art has gained many roots in in the Western market1. This form of art clearly does address the issues in China as well as the experiences in this region. It does not abandon the ancient Chinese identity as it is the only manner through which it gains a voice in the international art market (Dirlik, 1989). In accordance with Hsingyuan& Roger (2011), the discourse of Chinese contemporary art is synonymous with the discourse witnessed in the Western contemporary art. At the international scene, contemporary art originating from different backgrounds has often been evaluated and vetted under Western assumptions. These assumptions are predominantly made up of modernism and postmodernism. Inside this new cultural space that is more of narrowly defined, the relative position of Chinese contemporary art ends up being of great importance to art historians as well as other artists. The identity of Chinese contemporary art is often obstructed by the contradicting claims. Some of the literature claims that Chinese contemporary art is a derivative of the Western contemporary art. Others tend to claim that it is by far a manifestation of contemporary China (Boden, 2014). Athina and Schaffler-Gerken (2012) argue that the dilemma in terms of Chinese contemporary art came to be in 1981. During this period, the country was on its way to recovery from Stars Group. The Stars Group was an art movement that was driven by social protests. The movement was anxious for the 1985 new wave2. Figure 1 Congealed North Land by Wang Guangy, Background According to Hsingyuan& Roger (2011), the pioneers of literati art in China, a thousand years ago came up against the court practitioners. The main medium that were deployed for the campaign against the current government policies were their amateur art. A similar approach was deployed in 1980s by the Chinese artists, a period that marked the beginning of post-socialism in China. Contemporary Chinese artists were either under the umbrella of reputable national exhibitions and official socialist ideology or independently. In terms of this avant-garde, it was independent and did not operate under any government influence. During this period, the Chinese artists did try to re-energize the literati tradition. However, the New Literati Art Movement in the 1980s developed a form of art that was characterized by a lot of ink and brush. The two characteristics are especially conspicuous for the literati art that characterized Chinese art during the late imperial times. For Chinese artists who were greatly influenced by Western contemporary art, they developed an urge to develop a powerful language that would stand out against the common control of art. As a result, foreign diplomats, foreign students, and visiting scholars offered the much-needed help for this new form of Chinese artists (Clark, 2010)3. In agreement with Eckholm (2005), The Chinese contemporary art suffered a setback in the early 1990s, and the Chinese artists had to look for a better market for their work. The West offered the much-required audience for this Chinese work. The post-socialist art in Chinese art can only be defined through polysemic terms that have conflicting connotations. The immeasurable nature of this Chinese art has made it hard for individuals who wish to study certain dimensions of contemporary China (Boden, 2014). From the 1980s, a lot of changes in terms of the social structure, function and position. The Chinese artists developed a form of new art through which they would be able to interact with others. The Stars Group is a collection of Chinese artists who are self-taught and who were not trained in any form of academic setup. This group made up the initial avant-garde group that was of significant influence in China. They challenged both the political authority as well as the aesthetic convention. They used western styles that had been previously banned during the times of post-impressionism and abstract expressionism (Dragon & Garden, 2009). Chiu and Genocchio (2011) states that in September 1979, the group held its first exhibition outside the fence of the National Gallery without official permission. Following a disruption by the police, the Stars Group staged a protest near the Democracy Wall. However, they held their first official exhibition on November the same year with 163 works done by artists who were not professionals. Figure 2Wang Gangly, Death of Marat Research Questions Is contemporary Chinese art a post-socialist art or ancient Chinese art? There has been a rising dialogue between the Chinese and the Euro-American worlds. As a result, the visibility of contemporary has been raised to unprecedented heights (Solomon, 1993). HomiBhabha indicates that the only relationship that exists between postmodernism and the Chinese art is that they have occupied the nations of others. This raises questions about whether the Chinese artists are held ideologically as a result of depending on the Western social system. Simply, we intend to find out whether Chinese contemporary art is rooted deeply in the traditions of Chinese culture or just an example of self-colonization of culture (Bhabha, 2002). Evidence for Both traditional art and post-socialist art in China To understand whether Chinese contemporary art is more of post-socialist art or traditional Chinese art, it is of great importance to understand something. After the end of socialism, there came up groups of artists each with different intentions. For instance, some did not undergo any form of change and stuck to traditional art while other groups embraced the western styles that were banned by the previous leaderships (Hsingyuan& Roger, 2011)4. A historical evidence of the continuing growth of art in China from 1980 to 2000s Heidebegger (1982) states that in 1980, for example, the Stars group held an exhibition where they would criticize the authority through emphasizing self-expression. Also the same year, rustic realism was embraced. The artists making up the Scar paintings paid attention to the experiences they had during the Cultural Revolution. The Rustics gave a clear outline of the impact that the Cultural Revolution had on the ordinary people who lived in border regions and other rural areas. An example of this form of traditional Chinese art is in the Tibetan Series that was shown in October 1980. Besides to this category, artistic work by LuoZhongli named as Father won the first prize in the second national exhibition (Erjavec, 2003). Foster (2004) states that the authorities in China launched a campaign dubbed Anti-spiritual pollution campaign in early 1982. The campaign was to inhibit the increasing influence of western styles in the Chinese art. The western influences were believed to undermine the commitment of the Chinese people to communism. The campaign was carried out until 1984 and targeted an aspect of Humanism in literature and as well as in philosophy. The Westernizing trends in the art that made an appearance during the Cultural Revolution were viewed to include individualistic values and abstraction. In agreement with the campaign launched by the Chinese authorities, the Art Monthly’s January issues were denounced due to its entailing of articles revolving around abstract art. However regardless of this fight against such contaminating art, the presentation of western styles in Chinese art still escalated. For example, the works done by Munch and Picasso on Italian Renaissance art and French contemporary oil paintings were carried out in Beijing. The sixth national exhibition in Beijing resurrected the propagandist forms and political themes of the Cultural Revolution. The style of the exhibition and the retrograde content provoked a widespread backlash amongst many Chinese artists. The young artists ended up with a new movement known as the ’85 Movement (Uta and Schubbe, 2007)5. Per Minglu (2007), the year 1985 marked the banner year for the avant-garde in China. The campaign on anti-spiritual pollution ended the same year, but the Chinese government embarked on a range of liberal reforms. The avant-garde was released from the restraints of former policies of the leadership. As a result, all forms of Chinese arts including dance, literature, visual art, music, and film embraced avant-gardism to give birth to the ’85 Movement. The Chinese artists denounced conservatism and called for the freedom of expression in the art industry. The new movement championed for freedom of expression, individualism and a radical change of the aesthetic concepts and forms. The movement is an evidence of the post-socialist art in Chinese art because of the following reasons. To begin with, the younger generation making up this movement were openly opposing the official culture. Hong (2013) states that they were instead campaigning for a freedom of expression as well as individualism. Second, they championed for an overhaul of the aesthetic forms and concepts. To elaborate on this point, the movement rejected socialist realism and the Chinese traditional art. As a result, they adopted other forms of western art and postmodern styles that include Dada, Surrealism, Pop and conceptual art. The traditional Chinese styles of art were countered by some of the younger artists such as Li Xiaoshan. He published an essay referred to as the death of Chinese painting in the journal known as Jiangsu Pictorial. The article brought about shock in the world of traditional paintings and inspired debate among the members of the new and older generations of Chinese art. The artists making up the ’85 Movement were inspired by Robert Rauschenberg, who delivered a lecture at Beijing’s Central Academy of Graphic Arts (Hsiao-peng, 2007). The ’85 movement continued to enjoy more expansion especially in the area of anti-art (fan yishu) and conceptual groups. The conceptualists did challenge the traditional forms of academic styles, the propagandist art as well as the new schools of art. The conceptualists had a principal objective that involved eradicating subjectivity, utopianism, as well as the artist’s hand. The conceptualists used sources such as Chan (Zen) Buddhism and Dada and used language and readymade objects as their primary media. Dada is a concept of western art that tries to free any forms of doctrine or authority (Athina, and Schaffler-Gerken, 2012). 1986 marked a year when more Chinese artists from around the country held mixed-media exhibits, installations, happenings and performances throughout the year. The same year saw further growth in post-socialist art after the founding of a research committee on Chinese modern art. The committee was mandated with organizing for national wide avant-garde exhibitions. The authorities’ campaign against bourgeois liberalism targeted new cultural andpolitical thought and hampered the avant-garde activities (Dragon & Garden, 2009). Figure 3 Big-Character Posters by Wu Shanzhua The year 1987 saw the weakening of the ’85 Movement following two factors. First, the effects of the authorities’ campaign against bourgeois liberalism were still at large. The movement also weakened from the increasing pressures to embark on producing more commercial work. The economic measures by Deng in 1978 had resulted in the accumulation of these commercialization pressures. The government reduced its financial support for Chinese art suggesting that Chinese artists were allowed to look for commercial outlets through which they would sell their art. It is of great importance to note that commercialization was originally an illegal practice for Chinese artists (McGrath, 2008). The lack of acceptance for avant-garde in China forced some of the important artists to move overseas6. The campaign against bourgeois liberalism ended in the year 1988. Some avant-garde activities resumed while new ones began in the autumn and winter. For instance, Lu Shengzhong and Xu Bing carried out some solo exhibitions at the National Gallery in Beijing. A book from the sky was a form of artwork by Xu Bing that was made up of books as well as scrolls that were fabricated together using techniques, classical typographical styles and paper that are conspicuous to the traditional printing techniques of China (Zhang, 2000). However, the huge number of hand-carved characters were formulated by the artist and were unintelligible(Eckholm, 2005). Figure 4Mao Zedong by Wang GuangyiNo. 1, 1988, In the year 1989, the first national exhibition of avant-garde art was carried out. This was after many delays resulting from financial problems, political circumstances and the forces of conservatism. The avant-garde art exhibition was dubbed China/ Avant-garde with a sum of 293 paintings, videos, sculptures and installations by 186 artists. The influence of post-socialist art is evident from Wang Guangyi with his pop art influenced the style of art named as Mao Zedong No 1. This particular artistic work gave a working ground for the political pop trend that took place in the early 1990s. Per Minglu, (2003), the following figures show some of the work on exhibition in 1989. Figure 5Slogan from the 1989 China/Avant-Garde exhibition Figure 6Selling Shrimp, China by Wu Shanzhuan The China/Avant-garde was closed down twice during its run of two weeks. In the first instance, Xiao Lu and Tang Song transformed their dialog, installation into a small performance when they fired two gunshots into the installation. The other closure was as a result of anonymous bomb threats. Pre-democracy student demonstrations commenced on June 1989. As a result, a crackdown in Tiananmen Square oversaw the return of conservatism. Following the activity, the national Chinese avant-garde was castigated as an indigenous example of bourgeois liberalism (Braester, 2010). The year 1990 oversaw the tightening of the post-Tiananmen, the ongoing commercial pressures as well as the idealist avant-garde activities in China. From this point forward, the avant-garde in China went down and did not recover completely. Cases of avant-gardism in China were only left in the academy which were characterized by discreet eclecticism that had a combination of both progressive and conservative forms. For instance, Liu Xiadong who was a young teacher at this academy of fine arts held a solo exhibition in May. His oil painting was seen as a New Generation painting that is typical of cynical realism or cynicism in the 1990s (Erickson, 2005). 1990 also marked a year in which more avant-garde artists in China decided to flee the country in search of greener pastures. They were focused on the international scene since regardless of the dwindling demand for avant-gardism in their country, the international market was overly accommodative to their work. As a matter of fact, a large number of international exhibitions featured a significant number of Chinese avant-garde artists(Lee, 1999). Figure 7 rubbing the Great Wall, 1990 by Xu Bing In November 1992, the first national avant-garde exhibition was held in Guangzhou following the student demonstrations held in Tiananmen. The event organizers targeted an increase in the avant-garde artists in the local market as well as in the international scene. In the Guangzhou exhibition, some of the work on exhibition was characterized by post-socialism aspects that were brought in by the Western influence. A good example is Wang Guangyi whose work exemplified political pop that was a popular artistic trend in China following the Tiananmen demonstration. The new trend was still not welcomed by the Chinese authorities with open arms (Neves, 2012). Figure 8 1991, installation. Ghosts Pounding the Wall. Xu Bing The Chinese art practitioners combined revolutionary cultural imagery that is better referred to as socialist realist with the American pop art that had an irreverent sensibility. Throughout the early years of the 1990s, the cynical realist and political pop works were in much demand internationally. According to Peng (2006), in the year 1993 the Chinese avant-garde artists began producing artistic works that covered a range of topic concerning the problems arising from materialism and consumerism. The Chinese culture became more evident in the artistic work especially as an impact of the globalized economy. During this year, the international market developed a greater demand for the Chinese avant-garde. The development in interest was as a result of both commercial and ideological reasons. The Post-1989 Chinese New Art opened at the Arts Centre in Hong Kong in January. The exhibition of more than fifty artists with a total of about 200 artistic works moved on to Australia. These artistic works included sculptures, paintings and installations that all had a predominant cynical realist and the political pop stripe. Figure 9Wang GuangyisCoca-Cola, In the year 1994, an exhibition was carried out at the Huashan art school in May by a newer generation of Chinese installation artists. The third Chinese contemporary art exhibition was held at the East China Normal University’s library where art documents were mainly made up of videos and slides that portrayed installation and performance works. Several other installations and performances were held in private spaces in a new phenomenon that was dubbed Apartment art. A good example of such work is in Zhu Min, Ma Liuming as well as a group of other younger artists who staged private performances in the East Village which is a suburb of Beijing. The Chinese authorities were still not in support of avant-gardism and, as a result, they arrested this group of artists because their work consisted of erotic content (Smith, 2005). The period from 1995 to 1997 marked the aftermath of a cold war. The avant-garde artists in China came up with relatively high profiles in the international art circles. However, their work is ignored back at home. With the fact that China was one of the few remaining communist countries in the world, the international art institutions saw that the avant-garde in China as a key underground voice. The other reason as to why the Chinese avant-garde art gained more popularity in the international market is the fact that the country had undergone a rapid growth in the global market (Spender, 1982). An exhibition held in Beijing in 1996, for example, featured the latest sculptures, paintings, installation work as well as videos from a new generation of Chinese artists. On December the same year, a large-scale contemporary Chinese art exhibition was canceled by the authorities for reasons that remain unknown. This simply gives a rough idea of the antagonism that existed between the Chinese artists and their authorities in terms of what to include in their artwork (Tong, 2005). The year 2000 marked a start for the flourishing of the Chinese contemporary art movement. The avant-garde artwork earns high respect at the international exhibitions thus bringing a bit of tolerance at home. The Chinese authorities become more accommodative of the new generation artists in a move to uphold the country’s international profile. Following this new development, the Chinese artists have created a strong infrastructure of studios, galleries and plenty of museum space in order to support the growing communities all over the country (Visser, 2010). Since these developments came into place, Beijing has developed into an internationally recognized Art Center. The growth followed the creation of Dashanzi art district or better referred to as the 798 Art Zone. The art district is a complex of factories that were previously set up with bookstores, galleries and studios that provide the Chinese artists with an accommodating fan base (Zhang, 2008). Conclusion From the above analysis of the various sources, it is vivid that the Chinese art developed rapidly after the death of Mao. There existed some challenges that were posed by the Chinese authorities who were against the Western influence. 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