March 2008 | Volume 7, Number 2 Inside Special Feature on Painters: Su Xinping, Liu Xiaodong, Yue Minjun, Yang Jingsong Panel Discussion: What is Left of the Hype? Interview with Wei-Li Yeh do it Chinese Version ’85 New Wave Exhibition at the Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art US$12.00 NT$350.00 1 2 3 4 10 VOLUME 7, NUMBER 2, MARCH 2008 CONTENTS Editor’s Note 25 8 Contributors Special Feature on Painters 10 Su Xinping: Allegories of Loss Jonathan Goodman 18 New Pictures of the “Ugly Chinaman:” The Art of Liu Xiaodong Thorsten Botz-Bornstein 25 Interview with Yue Minjun Karen Smith 37 New Works/New Directions in the Art of Yang Jinsong 41 Patricia Eichenbaum Karetzky Symposium 41 What is Left of the Hype? Panel Discussion on China’s Art: Between New Beginnings and Commerce Artist Features 57 Wang Lang and Liu Xin Hua: Mission Accomplished Mathieu Borysevicz 64 Buried Treasures: An Afternoon with Wei-Li Yeh at the Cité Internationale des Art, Paris Joni Low 64 Do It 77 Why do it Chinese Version? Hu Yuanxing interviews Hans Ulrich Obrist and Hu Fang Reviews 84 A Chinese Frequency: Vital 07 – The Essence of Performance Rachel Lois Clapham 91 Breakout: Chinese Art Outside China Jonathan Goodman 91 98 A(n) (In)Decisive Act of Disclosure: Reflections on the ‘85 New Wave Exhibition at the Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art in Beijing Paul Gladston 105 Chinese Name Index 98 Cover: Yue Minjun, Contemporary Terracotta Warriors (detail), 2005, bronze, 55 x 182 x 55 cm. Private Collection. Courtesy of the artist and AW ASIA, New York. 5 Editor’s Note YISHU: Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art EG:H>9:CI Katy Hsiu-chih Chien ;DJC9>C<:9>IDG Ken Lum The past twenty years have witnessed the introduction and growth of many new forms :9>IDG Keith Wallace of art making in China. The prior dominance of B6C6<>C<:9>IDG Zheng Shengtian painting, sculpture, and photography in the style 6HHD8>6I::9>IDGH Julie Grundvig of Socialist Realism has virtually disappeared, Kate Steinmann now replaced by new media such as digital :9>IDG>6A6HH>HI6CI Chunyee Li photography, installation, video, and performance EGD?:8IB6C6<:G Larisa Broyde with content that often reflects the vast changes 69K:GI>H>C<B6C6<:G Joyce Lin characterizing modern China. But painting L:7H>I::9>IDG Chunyee Li itself has by no means lost its purpose, and not 69K>HDGN7D6G9 forgetting the visual and ideological power that Judy Andrews, Ohio State University Socialist Realism instilled upon the minds of the Melissa Chiu, Asia Society Museum population, many contemporary artists consider John Clark, University of Sydney painting a meaningful way to explore the social Lynne Cooke, Dia Art Foundation Okwui Enwezor, San Francisco Art Institute psyche of China today. Britta Erickson, Independent Scholar & Curator Fan Di’an, National Art Museum of China The texts on figurative painters presented in Yishu Fei Dawei, Guy & Myriam Ullens Foundation Gao Minglu, University of Pittsburgh 25 propose that painting continues to make an Hou Hanru, San Francisco Art Institute important contribution to contemporary Chinese Katie Hill, University of Westminster art, and identifying this contribution is essential to Claire Hsu, Asia Art Archive Martina Köppel-Yang, Independent Critic & Historian the establishment of its historical relevance. The Sebastian Lopez, Institute of International Visual Arts authors consider the painting of four artists and Lu Jie, Independent Curator unveil a social responsibility embedded within Charles Merewether, Cultural District, Saadiyat Island their work that reclaims a space for painting and Ni Tsaichin, Tunghai University Apinan Poshyananda, Ministry of Culture, Thailand outweighs the common assumption there is some Chia Chi Jason Wang, Independent Critic & Curator kind of complicity with the currently over-heated Wu Hung, University of Chicago market. Pauline J. Yao, Independent Scholar EJ7A>H=:G Art & Collection Group Ltd. Not unrelated to these issues is the transcription 9:H><C6C9EGD9J8I>DC Leap Creative Group of a panel discussion held at the MdM Mönchsberg in Salzburg in conjunction with 8G:6I>K:9>G:8IDG Raymond Mah the exhibition Mahjong: Chinese Contemporary AGI>G:8IDG Jeremy Lee Art from the Sigg Collection. Here, gallerists, L:7B6HI:G Website ARTCO, Taipei collectors, and curators debate the hype that EG>CI>C< Chong-yuan Image Ltd., Taipei surrounds contemporary Chinese art within the >HHC arenas of both the market and the museum. The Yishu is published bi-monthly in Taipei, Taiwan and edited in decisive challenges that face contemporary Vancouver, Canada. The publishing dates are first day of January, artists and gallerists, among them catering to a March, May, July, September, and November. hungry market or making history, are tackled in To subscribe please go online to www.yishujournal.com or call candid and thoughtful ways. 1.604.649.8187. Subscription rates: one year: US $60; two years: US $110. Other areas of contemporary Chinese art covered For airmail delivery please add US $18 per year for Asia; in this issue include the “image-banking” of US $24 for other regions. Wang Lang and Liu Xin Hua who, coincidentally, All subscription, advertising and submission inquiries may draw upon a vast resource of Socialist Realism be sent to: imagery, the long-term Treasure Hill residency Yishu Office project of Wei-Li Yeh in Taipei, the Chinese version 410-650 West Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC of Hans Ulrich Obrist’s do it project, as well as Canada V6B 4N8 Phone: 1.604.649.8187; Fax: 1.604.591.6392 substantive reviews of VITAL 07 in Manchester, E-mail: [email protected] the ’85 New Wave exhibition at the Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art in Beijing, and a new book Distributors: U.S.A. on Chinese art authored by Melissa Chiu. Journals Department, University of Hawai’i Press [email protected] Canada Disticor Magazine Distribution Services Keith Wallace www.disticor.com Australia Selectair Distribution Services www.selectair.com.au :*4)6&%*5*0/4 Advertising inquiries may be also sent to: /PXBWBJMBCMF9V#JOHµTMJNJUFEFEJUJPO Art & Collection Ltd. 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'PSNPSFJOGPSNBUJPOQMFBTFTFF XXXZJTIVKPVSOBMDPN We thank Mr. Milton Wong, and Mr. Daoping Bao, Paystone Technologies Corp., for their generous support. 6 Yishu: Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art 典藏國際版‧第7卷第2期‧2008年3月1日出版 6 編者手記 典藏國際版創刊於 2002年5月1日 8 作者小傳 社 長： 簡秀枝 總策劃： 鄭勝天 創刊編輯： 林蔭庭（Ken Lum） 畫家專題 主 編： 華睿思 (Keith Wallace) 10 蘇新平：失落的寓言 副編輯： 顧珠妮 (Julie Grundvig) Jonathan Goodman 史楷迪 (Kate Steinmann) 編輯助理： 黎俊儀 (Chunyee Li) 18 「醜陋的中國人」：劉小東的藝術 行 政： 藍立杉 (Larisa Broyde) Thorsten Botz-Bornstein 網站編輯： 黎俊儀 (Chunyee Li) 25 岳敏君訪談 廣 告： 林素珍 Karen Smith 顧 問： 王嘉驥 安雅蘭 (Judy Andrews) 37 楊勁松藝術之新路與近作 巫 鴻 Patricia Eichenbaum Karetzky 林似竹 (Britta Erickson) 范迪安 招穎思 (Melissa Chiu) 奧地利薩爾茨堡現代美術館國際研討會 洛柿田 (Sebastian Lopez) 侯瀚如 41 狂熱之後留下什麼？ 徐文玠 (Claire Hsu) 姜苦樂 (John Clark) 姚嘉善 (Pauline J. Yao) 藝壇聚焦 倪再沁 高名潞 57 王浪與劉新華：任務完成 費大爲 Mathieu Borysevicz 楊天娜 (Martina Köppel-Yang) 盧 杰 64 埋葬的寶藏： Lynne Cooke 在巴黎國際藝術城與葉偉立的對話 Okwui Enwezor 劉植紅（Joni Low) Katie Hill Charles Merewether Apinan Poshyananda 做 出 版： 典藏雜誌社 77 為什麼出版「做」中文版？ 台灣臺北市中山北路一段85號6樓 電話: (886) 2.2560.2220 胡昉／Hans Ulrich Obrist／胡遠行 傳真：(886) 2.2542.0631 電子信箱：[email protected] 書評展評 編輯部： Yishu Office 84 中國頻率： 410-650 West Georgia St., Vancouver, BC, Canada V6B 4N8 「活力07 – 行為藝術的基本元素」 電話: (1) 604.727.6187 Rachel Lois Clapham 傳真：(1) 604.591.6392 電子信箱: [email protected] 91 招颖思（Melissa Chiu）的 「突圍：海外華人藝術家」 訂閱、投稿及廣告均請與編輯部聯系。 Jonathan Goodman 設 計： Leap Creative Group 98 評北京尤倫斯藝術中心的85新潮展覽 印 刷： 中原造像股份有限公司 Paul Gladston 網 址： www.yishujournal.com 管 理： 典藏雜誌社 105 中英人名對照 國際刊號: 1683-3082 本刊在溫哥華編輯設計，臺北印刷出版發行。 一年6期。逢1、3、5、7、9、11月1日出版。 售價每本12美元。 自2008年起訂閲一年60美元，兩年110美元。 航空郵資亞洲一年加18美元。其他地區一年加 24美元。 訂閱單可從本刊網址下載。 封面：岳敏君，當代兵馬俑，2005，銅雕，55 x 182 x 55 公分， 版權所有，本刊內容非經本社同意不得翻譯 私人收藏， 藝術家和 AW ASIA 提供 和轉載。 7 Contributors Lothar Albrecht acquired his first piece of artwork at the age of seventeen, and established his own gallery, L.A. Galerie, in Frankfurt in 1990 to promote international contemporary art. He started exhibiting Chinese artists in 1995, and his gallery has since built a strong reputation for “discovering” new talent. In the fall of 2003, he founded L.A. Gallery, Beijing. Thorsten Botz-Bornstein received his Ph.D. in Philosophy from Oxford University, and is Assistant Professor at Tuskegee University, Alabama, teaching courses in ethics, humanities, and Eastern philosophy. He is the author of numerous books and articles, and his forthcoming publications focus on the subjects of dreams, culture, and genes in comparative (East/West) philosophy. Mathieu Borysevicz is an artist, critic, and curator based in New York and Shanghai. He has been involved with contemporary art in China since 1994. His writing has appeared in publications such as Artforum, Art in America, Art Asia Pacific, and tema celeste. His photography and video work has been shown internationally at the Tribeca Film Festival, the Institute of Contemporary Art, London, the Bauhaus, the Shanghai Duolun Museum, the Bronx Museum, and the Israeli Center for Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv. He is currently working on Learning from Hangzhou, a photographic case study in the form of book and exhibition that examines the relationship between architecture and signage in Hangzhou. Rachel Lois Clapham has an M.A. in Contemporary Art Theory from Goldsmiths College, London. She is a curator, editor and writer with Writing From Live Art (www.