Liu Zheng
dal 14/11/2008 al 25/4/2009
Segnalato da
14/11/2008
Liu Zheng
Williams College Museum of Art, Williamstown
The Chinese. The exhibition features all 120 photographs taken between 1994 and 2001. The subjects are an array of characters, including coal miners, Taoist priests, Buddhist monks, prostitutes, convicts, and even waxwork figures from historical museums.
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.
Opening Saturday, November 15, 2008
Williams College Museum of Art
15 Lawrence Hall Drive - Williamstown