MCLC: Unofficial Chinese Art, 1974-1985

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: kirk (denton.2 at osu.edu)
Subject: Unofficial Chinese Art, 1974-1985
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Source: 
http://asiasociety.org/hong-kong/exhibitions/light-dawn-unofficial-chinese-
art-1974-1985

Light before Dawn: Unofficial Chinese Art 1974-1985
15 May 2013 - 1 September 2013

Asia Society Hong Kong
9 Justice Drive
Admiralty
Hong Kong
亞洲協會香港中心
香港賽馬會復修軍火庫
香港金鐘正義道九號
+852-2103-9511

Light before Dawn: Unofficial Chinese Art 1974-1985 presents a revealing
look at the creative spectrum of China’s most influential contemporary
artists from three different artist groups of the period: Wuming (No
Name), Xingxing (Star), and Caocao (Grass Society). More than one hundred
artworks, including a significant number of paintings and sculptures, will
be on view, together with ephemera and personal items.

Wuming, Xingxing and Caocao were formed by like-minded artists in Beijing
and Shanghai during the 1970s. Spanning two generations, the artists never
ceased to create artworks, sometimes working quietly and even secretly,
until the Communist Party’s decision to relax restrictions on artistic
practices in 1985. Between the pivotal years of 1974 and 1985, the young
members of Wuming, Xingxing and Caocao sought to resist the proliferation
of official art by innovating through new interpretations of nature,
abstraction and ink painting. Crossing the boundaries of subject matter
and style, they often questioned, re-evaluated and redefined the forms,
the nature of beauty and the art of China. Works in the exhibition trace
the beginning of modernism in the post-Mao era. The exhibition aims to
shed light on the little-known artwork of this era, which helped to set
the stage for the emergence of a contemporary art movement in China and
also on the global scene.