Hear Jiang Jiehong discuss this concise but far-reaching survey of contemporary Chinese art that incorporates a critical examination of art and visual culture in contemporary China — a recording of the talk is available to stream.
Redefining contemporary Chinese art in the last forty years and placing it in the context of unprecedented cultural, political and urban transformation, The Art of Contemporary China features original research through first-hand materials and in-depth interviews with more than 30 artists in the last 10 years.
Professor Jiang appears in conversation with Xiaowen Zhu, followed by the UK premiere of the artist Zhao Zhao’s Project Taklamakan (2015-6) and a book signing.
Professor Jiang Jiehong is Head of Research at School of Art, Director of the Centre for Chinese Visual Arts, Birmingham City University, and also Principal Editor of the Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art (Intellect). Jiang curated the Guangzhou Triennial: the Unseen (2012), the Asia Triennial Manchester: Harmonious Society (2014), the First Thailand Biennale: Edge of the Wonderland (Krabi, 2018-19) and This Is Shanghai (a partner exhibition of the 10th Liverpool Biennial, 2018).
Jiang’s book publications include Burden or Legacy: from the Chinese Cultural Revolution to Contemporary Art (Hong Kong University Press, 2007), The Revolution Continues: New Art from China (Saatchi Gallery, 2008), Red: China’s Cultural Revolution (Jonathan Cape, 2010), An Era without Memory: Chinese Contemporary Photography on Urban Transformation (Thames and Hudson, 2015), The Art of Contemporary China (Thames and Hudson, 2021) and The Otherness of the Everyday: 12 Conversations from the Chinese Art World during the Covid-19 Pandemic (Intellect, 2021).