2017624 ThinkYouKnowChina?

TalesofOurTimeWillMakeYouThinkAgainTheNewYorkTimes

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ThinkYouKnowChina?
TalesofOurTimeWill
MakeYouThinkAgain
ReadinChinese
Eightprojectscommissionedbyyoungerartistsfrom
HongKong,TaiwanandChinapresentstartlinglyfresh
pointsofviewinthisshowattheGuggenheimMuseum.
ByBARBARAPOLLACK OCT.27,2016
PopArtportraitsofMaoZedongandinstallationsofQingdynastyfurniturehave
longrepresentedtheChineseartworldinNewYorkandotherculturalcentersin
theUnitedStates.

ButtheGuggenheimMuseumintendstobroadentheartisticexperiencewith
itsTalesofOurTime,openingonFriday,Nov.4.Featuringeightnewly
commissionedprojectsbyartistsfromHongKongandTaiwan,aswellasfrom
China,thisexhibitionwillpresentfreshapproachestocontemporaryartfromthe
region,highlightingalternativenarrativesthatdepartsharplyfromnews
accountsandofficialhistories.

Ourexhibitionisnottryingtotellpeoplewhatisrightorwrong,butmaybe
onewaywecanthinkaboutitis,howcanwediversifypeoplesthinkingabout
Chineseart?saidXiaoyuWeng,anassociatecurator.Ms.WengandHouHanru,
consultingcurator,organizedtheexhibitionundertheRobertH.N.HoFamily
FoundationChineseArtInitiative,a$10milliongrantdevotedtoresearchingand
commissioningworksforthepermanentcollection.

Theinitiativesfirstiteration,WangJianwei:TimeTemple,whichopened
in2014,focusedonasingleartistofanoldergeneration,whoseexperimental

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2017624 ThinkYouKnowChina?TalesofOurTimeWillMakeYouThinkAgainTheNewYorkTimes

workshavebeenhighlyinfluentialinChina,whileTalesofOurTimebrings
togetheradiversegroupofyoungerartiststoofferabroaderviewofthenext
waveinChinesecontemporaryart.

FromthecatastrophicmudslideinShenzhentotheSinoJapanesedisputeover
theDiaoyuIslands(whichtheJapanesecalltheSenkaku)intheEastChinaSea,
theexhibitiontouchesontopicspulledstraightfromtheheadlines,but
interpretedbyartistswhoarestorytellersmorethantheyaredocumentarians.
Employingmediafrominkpaintingtoanimatronics,theyconceiveofChinamore
asaconceptthanasanidentity,eschewingeasyassociationsandsymbols.Thisis
fittingforashowthattakesinspirationfromthe1936modernistclassicOld
TalesRetold,byLuXun,whoappropriatedfolkloretocritiquethesocial
conditionsofhistime.Likewise,theartistsinTalesofOurTimeexamine
conditionsincontemporaryChinathroughapproachesthatoftenblurthe
distinctionbetweenfactandfiction.

Arthasitsownparticularnarrative,whichisnotjustaboutillustratinga
givenfact,Mr.Housaid.Itisaboutimaginationandakindofindependence.

Mr.Hou,artisticdirectoratMaxxi,theNationalMuseumofthe21stCentury
Arts,inRome,joinedMs.WengonstudiovisitsinBeijing,Shanghai,Guangzhou,
NanjingandHangzhou,startinginOctober2015.Intheend,theychosefive
individualartists,ZhouTao,ChiaEnJao,KanXuan,SunXunandTsangKin
WahtheteamSunYuan&PengYuandthethreememberYangjiangGroup,
mostofwhomwillbemakingtheirAmericandebuts.

SunXun,a36yearoldBeijingartistwhohasalreadyshowninNewYorkat
theSeanKellyGallery,preparedseveralmuralsizescrollsontowhichhishand
drawnanimationswillbeprojected,offeringasurrealisticlookathishometown,
Fuxin,acoalminingcapitalinnortheastChinathathasfallenintodecline.The
YangjiangGroupZhengGuogu,46ChenZaiyan,45andSunQinglin,44is
creatinganinteractiveteagardenforthecirculargalleryoverlookingCentral
Park,withabloodpressurestationforvisitorstomeasurethecalmingeffectthe
installationhasontheirsenses.

FortheTaipeiartistMr.Jao,40,theexhibitionwasachancetocompletea
video,Taxi,thathehasbeencontemplatingforseveralyears.Forthiswork,he
surreptitiouslyrecordedconversationswithtaxidriversenroutetopolitically

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2017624 ThinkYouKnowChina?TalesofOurTimeWillMakeYouThinkAgainTheNewYorkTimes

chargedsitesaroundthecity.Fromagroupof60,hechosetoconcentrateonfive
whospecificallyspokeofthehistoryoftheirdestinationsfrompersonal
experience.Throughthisproject,Igettoviewnotbrainwashing,buthowthings
imprintonourmemory,Mr.Jaosaidinatelephoneinterview.

Ms.Kan,44,anotherartistfromBeijingandoneoftwowomeninthe
exhibition,alsocompletedalongtermproject,basedonextensivetravels
throughoutChinato110ruinsofancientcities.HermultimediainstallationKu
LueErplaysvideoson11screenscompiledfromthethousandsofimagesshe
shotonhermobilephoneduringherjourney.Mr.HouandMs.Wengrecalltheir
visittoherstudioasoneoftheirfavoritesincontrasttothelusciousimagesthey
wereseeing,Ms.Kanscrampedapartment,whichservedasherstudio,wasina
rundownbuilding,unlikethevastspacesthatmanysuccessfulChineseartists
inhabit.Theyreviewedworkandlistenedformorethanfivehoursasherideas
pouredforth.

Often,weseeartiststodayworkinginasituationthatismuchmore
glamorous,butthiswasoneofthemostmemorablemeetings,Mr.Housaid.

TheartistswhotestedthelimitsoftheGuggenheimasaninstitutionarethe
teamofSunYuan,42,andMs.Peng,44(theotherfemaleartist),whointhepast
havemadeinstallationsusinghumanbodyfat,liveanimalsandcorpses.Atthe
Guggenheim,theywillpresentashovelwieldingmachinescoopingupabloodlike
liquidasitseepsacrossthefloor.Whenwefirstheard,wethoughtitwaspretty
cool,wethoughtitwasprettyawesome,butwedidnotknowhowitwasgoingto
getrealized,Ms.Wengsaid,notingthatthemuseumhadconcernsaboutsafety
andpotentialdamage.

Forthisgenerationofartists,Chineseidentityisacompletelydifferent
experiencefromwhatitwasforthepreviousgeneration,whichsufferedthrough
theisolationandrepressionoftheCulturalRevolution,from1966to1976.

Manyoftheseartistsstudiedabroad,andmostworkinternationally.Mr.Jao
earnedamasteroffineartsfromGoldsmithsinLondon,forexample,andMs.
KandivideshertimebetweenBeijingandAmsterdam.Theseartistsconcentrate
onindividualidentities,ratherthanChineseidentity,butallbuildonquite
Chinesetopics,Mr.Housaid.Itsreallyaboutwhathappensatthismomentin

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2017624 ThinkYouKnowChina?TalesofOurTimeWillMakeYouThinkAgainTheNewYorkTimes

Chinesesocietythatprovokesdebates,whichontheonehandisaglobally
importantquestion,andontheother,reallyaveryindividualinterpretation.

Insuchanexhibition,Chinaisnolongeranexoticterritoryoranational
identity,butaculturalconstructframedasmuchbycurrentsocialconditionsas
by5,000yearsofhistory.Ontheonehand,Idontwantpeopletoget
intimidatediftheydontknowanythingaboutChineseart,but,also,Idontwant
peopletothinktheyareexpertsandcomelookingtomatchtheirpreconceived
knowledge,Ms.Wengsaid.Iwantpeopletothinkaboutgeopolitics,Iwant
peopletothinkaboutcontestedlandscapes,Iwantpeopletoentertheexhibitions
andthinkaboutconceptsandideas,notasetofidentities.

Correction:October30,2016
Becauseofaneditingerror,anarticlelastSundayaboutprojectscommissionedby
youngerartistsfromHongKong,TaiwanandChinaattheGuggenheimMuseum
misstatedthelocationoftheDiaoyuIslands.TheyareintheEastChinaSea,notthe
SouthChinaSea.
AversionofthisarticleappearsinprintonOctober30,2016,onPageF28oftheNewYorkeditionwith
theheadline:ChinaReborn.

2017TheNewYorkTimesCompany

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