mahjong: contemporary chinese art @ berkeley art museum
I had a chance to preview “Mahjong: Contemporary Chinese Art from the Sigg Collection” this weekend at the University of California, Berkeley Art Museum. It’s an amazing show, well worth the trip to Berkeley.
In 141 works by ninety-six artists, the exhibition Mahjong: Contemporary Chinese Art from the Sigg Collection represents the historical span of art from the 1970s to today in China and demonstrates the dramatic evolution that has occurred, with artists exploring new materials and concepts far from what might have been imagined by even the most clairvoyant. As Chinese art emerged from the boundaries of state-sponsored and state-defined aesthetics to the complex initiatives of individuals with new intentions and motivations, it is possible to see the growth and development not only of art but of a nation.
I want to go back and soak it all in again. I have had very little exposure to what’s happening in China’s art scene, other than what Vanity Fair covered last December, and the show just blew me away…