Word: avant
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...some ways, given the frothiness of the global art market as a whole, Asia's rise is understandable. Yet the boom in modern Asian art also serves as an important reminder that the region is not just a copier but an innovator as well. Asia's avant-garde artists explore the clash between ancient traditions and pell-mell development, the lure of commercialism, and, most fundamentally, the struggle for individuality on the world's most populous continent. "There's this misconception that art from Asia is static, that it's the same old boring stuff," says Eloisa Haudenschild, an Argentine...
...Ironically, it is China, with its authoritarian government and notorious cultural police, that allows its artists the most room for self-expression. Yes, direct criticisms of the Communist Party are taboo, and the culture cops occasionally shutter avant-garde exhibitions. Nevertheless, ironic depictions of Chairman Mao and not-so-subtle critiques of official corruption or urban alienation fill Beijing and Shanghai galleries. Some artists, particularly those who grew up during the Cultural Revolution, playfully twist that era's socialist-realist propaganda art - think heroic laborers, red-cheeked peasants and stalwart soldiers lifting banners with brand names or consumerist messages. Best...
...reluctance to explore different artistic avenues; imagine if Picasso spent his entire career in his Blue Period. Art critics worry that the current buying boom will only lead to creative stagnation - and that everyone from the artists to national governments are being blinded by money. "What people call avant-garde art in China has actually been co-opted by the government and is now mainstream," says Yang Zhenzhong, a multimedia artist from the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, who is being showcased this year at the prestigious Venice Biennale. "The government realizes art has commercial value, so it's become...
...suites featuring mod interiors, and gets so excited talking about Ahilya Fort in Maheshwar, in the central state of Madhya Pradesh--a region that Jayasundera feels has been unfairly neglected by tour operators--that he chokes with laughter. "The Indore royal family that owns the small fort were very avant-garde. They had an amazing art collection by the '30s, and they were the first family to build an air-conditioned palace," he says, going on to describe the Labradors that jump in the skiff ferrying guests to nearby islands and temples, and host Prince Richard Holkar...
...sixth out of eight children, Jeremy R. Steinemann ’08 is very familiar with the intricacies of sibling relationships. Steinemann’s latest project, the avant-garde comedy “The Mineola Twins,” deals directly with sibling dynamics. The play runs from Oct. 19-27 in the Loeb Experimental Theatre. The Crimson recently caught up with Steinemann, a Romance languages and literatures concentrator from Lowell House, to discuss the play...