AAH-194 Visual Culture in Communist China

A Union College Art History Course, Spring 2023

Author: Julian Zapata-Hall

Zhan Wang Exhibition Theme

The exhibition will display the variety of Zhan Wang’s stainless steel sculptures and installations. Zhan Wang is a sculptor whom was born in 1963 in Beijing, China. Although throughout his successful career he has the opportunity to hold exhibitions in multiple other countries, Wang was artistically formed in China. His work is critical in nature and considered as part of the surrealism movement. The Surrealism movement in both art and culture seeks to reunite conscious and unconscious realms of experience so completely that the world of dream and fantasy can be joined to the everyday rational world in “an absolute reality, a surreality (The Surrealist Manifesto, 1924).” Wang’s critical pieces particularly center around decisions taken by the Chinese government while in his childhood and young adulthood. The exhibition will display the variety of Zhan Wang’s stainless steel sculptures and installations. It will feature an Urban Landscape installation, multiple sculptures including some from Wang’s Artificial Rock series and pictures of other pieces not present at the exhibition. Although Zhan Wang’s stainless steel pieces may all use the same medium, they represent many different critiques. The exhibition will attempt to give Zhan Wang’s distinct critiques in the medium of stainless steel a voice and home. 

The reseason behind the specific medium selection is the originality and creativity in stainless steel sculpture and installation. Additionally, although Zhan Wang has pieces and installations across a variety of mediums, stainless steel is one of his most used. Many of his pieces in the medium have obtain high levels of fame such that stainless steel pieces have become a symbol of Wang’s work. This medium was acquired however, as the surrealism style associated with such pieces. His first significant works were traditional in nature, however, in 1990 Wang began experimenting with surrealism. 

Wang’s first internationally recognized surrealistic series, the “Mao Suit” series, was first exhibited in 1994 and consisted of a composition composed of a variety of Mao style suits which had been solidified and posed in different ways.  In 1995, his first internationally recognized stainless steel series was first exhibited, “Artificial Rocks”. Since then, the vast majority of Wang’s internationally recognized pieces, series or installations have been in the medium of stainless steel. 

With the exhibit, I intend to highlight such pieces as a representation of Wang’s critiques of China, while detailing the differences between the pieces, series and installations in the medium.

 

Bibliography:

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Surrealism.” Encyclopedia Britannica, April 4, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/art/Surrealism.

Central Academy of Fine Arts. “RTSM | ZHAN Wang: It was already the doomsday, but I’m back to reality again.”. 2020. https://www.cafa.com.cn/en/News/details/8330204.

Wang, Alice. “Zhan Wang: Master Sculptor”. ARTZINE, A Chinese Contemporary Art Portal. 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20120310022556/http://new.artzinechina.com/display.php?a=200

Zhan Wang’s Official Website

This link takes you to Zhan Wang’s official website, while this other link sends you to a MET collection website for a piece by the artist. Zhan Wang’s website is not particularly colorful and features few colors and no images in its landing page. It does, however, provide an up-to-date list of Wang’s artwork, his projects, as well as for an updated description and.contact information. The second link for the MET exhibition displays the information for one of Wang’s stainless steel rock sculptures (Artificial Rock #10). It features information on the artistic reception of the piece, and the evolution of Wang’s artistic process in the creation of stainless steel sculptures.

Zhan Wang “Urban Landscape – San Francisco”

“Urban Landscape – San Francisco” is a visually stunning installation. It was installed by Zhan Wang (China, b. 1962) and is constructed using a large amount of stainless steel household cooking objects. Pans with spoons and serving utensils outline the city. The inner city features tall towers of pots and pans of different shapes and sizes which perfectly emulate skyscrapers. Knives and other similar objects highlight the lanes of the city roads. The background is illuminated in part by Wang’s famous stainless steel rock sculptures. 

The piece is critical in nature. The intention of the piece is to show the potential of change in  beautiful cities. He is able to travel the world and create beautiful cities that are disassembled after some time. Growing up in China, Wang explains that the places he loved in his city were constantly demolished along with all the memories from those places.

“As someone who has lived all his life in Beijing, I have seen this regime demolishing non-stop. They don’t let you choose a place and make it special and meaningful; sooner or later, they will take it down. By trying to reach a level of western-oriented modernization, we are destroying the continuity of our own tradition.” – Zhan Wang

 

Bibliography:

Art Basel. “Urban Landscape – San Francisco, 2008”. 2015. https://www.cafa.com.cn/en/News/details/8330204.

Zhan Wang

Zhan Wang was born in 1963 in Beijing, China. Since his childhood, Wang was fond of drawing. Once a young adult, Wang spent three and a half years studying sculpture at Beijing Industrial Arts College.  Wang expanded his awareness of art by taking courses with teachers from the Fine Arts College and even spent time practicing his drawing skills by copying Buddha figures in Buddhist temples. Zhan Wang’s first significant works date to 1988, and are traditional in nature. In 1990 Wang began experimenting with surrealism.  In 1994, he exhibited the “Mao Suit” series for the first time and in 1995, he created the “Artificial Rocks” series. In 1996 Wang graduated from the Sculpture Department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA), where he currently teaches sculpture. In 2010, Zhan Wang created the “My Personal Universe” series. Zhan Wang’s latest solo exhibition was entitled “Zhan Wang: Objects of Idea”, showing 22 works of different creative directions from 1988.

 

Bibliography:

Wang, Alice. “Zhan Wang: Master Sculptor”. ARTZINE, A Chinese Contemporary Art Portal. 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20120310022556/http://new.artzinechina.com/display.php?a=200

Central Academy of Fine Arts. “RTSM | ZHAN Wang: It was already the doomsday, but I’m back to reality again.”. 2020. https://www.cafa.com.cn/en/News/details/8330204.

 

Julian Zapata-Hall

Hello. My name is Julian and I am a Math major. I enjoy both art and history. Have always enjoyed artistic displays like paintings, sculptures or performances. On the other hand, history has always been one of my favorite school subjects. With this class I intend to learn more about Chinese Art and Communist China.

In my free time I enjoy playing soccer, basketball or chess. I also enjoy listening to rock, jazz, hip-hop, salsa, reggaeton and reggae.

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