Nine Lives: The Birth of Avant-Garde Art in New China (The Updated Edition)

This highly readable and insightful book is a rich trove of information for anyone interested in modern Chinese history and the contemporary art engendered by economic and social reform in China. These are the stories of nine individuals, born at the onset of the People's Republic of China, who grew up during the Cultural Revolution to become some of the most influential characters to shape modern art both within China and on the international scene. The author, British art historian Karen Smith, has lived in China since 1992 following the development of contemporary art and the careers of nine artists: Wang Guangyi, Geng Jianyi, Fang Lijun, Gu Dexin, Li Shan, Zhang Xiaogang, Xu Bing, Zhang Peili and Wang Jianwei. These artists have come to embody the avant-garde in Chinese art. Smith's fluency in Mandarin allows for a penetrating insight into the mindset of the generation she describes and gives an edge to the text that other histories lack. What does "avant-garde" in the context of modern Chinese history mean? How have familial circumstances and the impact of socio-political events influenced the individual creative processes? Smith challenges many received notions of individual stances and aspirations. Opening the book are a glossary of terms and timeline outlining the most significant events that took place in China from 1944 to the present. The author structures the stories in three sections each prefaced by an introduction to the three artists profiled, their similarities, differences and significance within the larger context. Every chapter is illustrated with images chronicling the artists in their youth, as students at State-run painting institutes, latterly in their largely expansive studios. Beyond the images for which they all became famous, Smith presents early work fundamental to their development that has since been lost or destroyed. The author provides a thorough and entertaining analysis of the lives of nine artists who ushered "avantgarde" art into China. Nine Lives: The Birth of Avant-Garde Art in New China will become standard reading for anyone interested in the challenging and dynamic culture and society of contemporary China. Book jacket.… (more)