WesMaps - Wesleyan University Catalog 2018-2019       Summer Session       Winter Session       Home       Archive       Search
CS92PROD
Art of No-Return: Modern and Contemporary Chinese Art
ARHA 288
Spring 2019 not offered
Crosslisting: CEAS 168

With record-breaking auction prices, often in the millions for a single work, modern and contemporary Chinese art has captured international attention over the past two decades. These works, often flamboyant and contentious, reflect the political, social, and cultural changes that China has experienced since the conclusion of its dynastic past in 1911. In this course, we will examine the development of modern and contemporary Chinese art in the context of these changes, from the influx of Western social theories in the 1920s and '30s, through the Japanese invasion and the political upheavals during the Mao (1893--1976) and post-Mao eras, to the socio-economic reforms of the 1980s to the present times. We will study leading artists, such as Xu Beihong, Ai Weiwei and Zhang Huan, whose works in painting, sculpture, architecture, installation, and performance art helped to define the new Chinese art. While examining the artworks, we will explore issues related to the tension between Chinese nationalism and Westernization, the adaptation of modern aesthetics and visual technologies, the conflict between state sponsorship and censorship, the changing perception of gender and self-image, the emergence of urban space and consumer culture, and the connection between art and the global economy. The goal of this course is to provide an advanced understanding of Chinese art in the present times.
Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: HA ART
Course Format: SeminarGrading Mode: Graded
Level: UGRD Prerequisites: None
Fulfills a Major Requirement for: None

Last Updated on MAR-28-2024
Contact wesmaps@wesleyan.edu to submit comments or suggestions. Please include a url, course title, faculty name or other page reference in your email ? Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459