Cultural Revolution

Creative Time's Democracy in America extravaganza at the Armory got me thinking about political art again. And what better follow-up than the Art of the Cultural Revolution show at Asia. Now, that's when art was political, leading to arrests and executions for those who did not follow the party line. It's a fascinating show--like every Cold War-age American, I am a sucker for this kitsch--though I am not sure it makes clear the dark side of state-run art production. Instead, it emphasizes how much this period has influenced contemporary Chinese art by introducing western painting to the Chinese academy. That's one way of looking at it, though sometimes these days, I wish it had more lasting influences. At least these pictures of peasants, soldiers and workers depicted peasants, soldiers and workers as opposed to alot of today's Chinese art which only reflects the blatant consumerism of the society. Two shows up now in New York demonstrate exactly what I mean: He Sen at Jack Tilton, near pornography of China dolls, and Xu Zhen at James Cohan, a replica of a Shanghai minimart. Though I found the supermarket charming--it made me miss China a bit--it really wasn't much of a concept. (It did appeal to the tourist in most art lovers, who clammered to buy a stick of gum or a bottle of water with Chinese on the label.) He Sen, I'm sure appeals to another brand of tourism, the white guy shopping for an Asian girlfriend, which is also prevalent in China. In contrast, the women in the cultural revolution material looked far more forward-thinking and active. And the tschtokes on view at the Asia Society--Mao plates, mugs, match books, statues--were more satisfying souveniers than the items on sale at Xu Zhen's shop. Though my skin crawls whenever I hear a Chinese culture official talk about art "uplifting the people," some of these shows now up in New York make me long for an art that is about something more than cashing in on stereotypes.