The Chinese opens at the Williams College Museum of Art
Liu Zheng: The Chinese opens at the Williams College Museum of Art, this Saturday, November 15, 2008.I am attracted to the more unhappy, tragic elements of Chinese society and culture. I believe that Chinese culture and history are riddled with tragedy, difficulty, and bitterness. The heavy weight of this cultural heritage makes it difficult for many Chinese to achieve a bit of comfort and happiness in life. - Liu Zheng
On view through April 26, 2009, The Chinese features 120 photographs taken by Liu Zheng (Chinese, b. 1969) over a seven-year period. In a style that combines the ambition of August Sander with the vision of Diane Arbus, Liu set out to create an epic photographic representation of life in China. The Williams College Museum of Art is the only museum in the world to have all 120 photographs of Liu’s completed magnum opus and this is the first time they will be on view for the public.
This work reflects a time of dizzying modernization in China’s history. The nation had recently reversed the economic policies of communism in favor of free trade with the rest of the world. Millions of people formally employed in agrarian businesses moved to cities and industrial jobs. Individual income rose exponentially year after year. Old neighborhoods were destroyed to make room for the construction of new buildings.
Liu traveled constantly during this period. What seemed most significant to him were those stories lurking in the shadows of China’s economic turnaround. He avoided overt images of the “new China,” such as high-rise apartment buildings in Beijing or ultra-modern industrial complexes. Instead, he focused on people: priests, drug dealers, miners, prisoners, strippers, transvestites, beggars, people living with physical or mental challenges, the infirmed, the dying, and the dead.
Liu Zheng: The Chinese complements three, related exhibitions currently on view at the museum:
-Beyond the Familiar: Photography and the Construction of Community
-Fiona Tan: Countenance
-Independent Film and Ethnography
This exhibition was organized by John Stomberg, Deputy Director and Chief Curator, with curatorial and research assistance from Williams College graduate students in art history: Aimee Hirz ’07 , Tianyue Jiang ’08, and Yao Wu ’07.
