Modernism or Realism? The question in China’s quest for modernity through art

How to modernise art for a modern China? What ideas and practices should China adapt from the West? Such questions figured prominently in intellectual debate about modernisation at the start of the twentieth century. Within a few decades, art in China had undergone dramatic change, from conception through production to reception. This public lecture will look at Chinese art practice and art debate at the time with a focus on the first Chinese national art exhibition in Shanghai in 1929. SPEAKER: Dr Yiyan Wang, Chair of Chinese Studies, the University of Sydney For speaker's biography see: tinyurl.com/jyxabv3