All things old China - books, anecdotes, stories, podcasts, factoids & ramblings from the author Paul French
Had cause to go into the old Grand Hotel de Pekin recently, which now sits in a row with the newer Beijing Hotel on the corner of Chang’an and Wangfujing (formerly Morrison Street). Very posh and a nice restoration done a while back by the Raffles people on the exterior and lobby. Anyway, inspired me to dig out a picture of the original structure.
then…
and now…
All these posts of Robert Bickers, his new book and China tour recently put me in a mood to note a project he is involved in called Visualising China. It’s an incredible and growing archive of photographs of old China being built out of Bristol University by Jamie Carstairs, the Digitisation Officer (a bit of a William Gibson type job title that!!). A much over-worked term but this certainly looks like becoming a treasure trove.
Check it out – and I think they’re always looking for more photos if anyone has any they can offer them.
Just a quickie for all those resident in the capital – Robert Bickers will be at the Bookworm talking about his excellent new book (see previous posts), well worth a listen – details as follows:
The Scramble for China – Foreign Devils in the Qing Empire
Tuesday May 24 – 7.30pm
The Scramble for China is an epic, dynamic account of a century of Sino-foreign interactions, confrontation and confusion. Told from both the Western and Chinese point-of-view, Robert Bickers’ book examines how events such as the opium wars or the Boxer uprising have impacted upon China’s relations with the world. Robert Bickers is the author of the highly-acclaimed Empire Made Me: An Englishman Adrift in Shanghai. He has written extensively on Chinese history and is currently Professor of History at the University of Bristol.
Talking of the exhibition of Mao posters at Westminster University reminded me that if you are in London anytime soon there’s actually quite a lot of art to see – The Lisson Grove Gallery in Bell Street is holding its largest ever exhibition and it’s all of Ai Weiwei’s work. The exhibition will remain on display until July 16 with little fear of the Metropolitan Police shutting it down. The gallery, at 29 and 52-54 Bell Street, is open from 10am to 6pm Mondays to Fridays, and from 11am to 5pm on Sundays. For more information, see www.lissongallery.com.
Of course while in London you could pop over to Somerset House where, until June 26th, they’re exhibiting Circle of Animals, a series of sculptures of zodiac animals heads throughout the magnificent courtyard of the building. The artist – Ai Weiwei. They are rather striking comprising 12 bronze animal heads, re-creations of the traditional Chinese zodiac sculptures which once adorned the fountain of the Yuanming Yuan (Summer Palace) in Beijing. The installation is part of an International Tour which started in New York.
I am fascinated by making public art. ‘Public’ does not just refer to the museum public; it’s for people passing by and using communal spaces. I think the public deserve the best. In the past, only a pope or an emperor had access to the artworks they commissioned. I want my work to be accessible to everyone. As Yuanming Yuan was being built, Somerset House was being constructed and for me this means that the Courtyard is the perfect setting for Circle of Animals.
Ai Weiwei, 2011
Of course you don’t need me to tell you that Ai Weiwei disappeared at the beginning of April after being arrested by Chinese authorities as he tried to board a plane to Hong Kong on business. His whereabouts remain unknown and no formal charges have yet been brought against him.
An advert for the old Astor House Hotel – still standing and fully functioning of course as the Pujiang over on Huangpu (Whangpoo) Road by the Garden Bridge…
Should you be in or around London between now and mid-July there’s a potentially interesting exhibition of old Mao posters on at the University of Westminster from the university’s own collection of posters (which I was unaware they had). The styles quite appeal (and I’ve used non-Mao Chinese propaganda posters myself as covers I’ll admit – Fat China) but the posters featuring Mao are a bit more creepy. It is amazing how we all rightly revile Hitler and Stalin but that Mao retains this kitschy element that other mass murderers have failed to get!! I’m also not quite clear from the web site who put the exhibition together or how come there’s a collection of Mao posters off the back of Regent Street!!
Poster Power: Images from Mao’s China, Then and Now
Date: 11 May 2011 6.30pm – 14 July 2011 8.30pm
Address: 309 Regent Street, London
12 May – 14 July 2011
Posters from Mao’s China exercise an enduring appeal to audiences across the globe, more than sixty years after the events that produced them. They are revisited in modern and contemporary Chinese art and commercial design, and curated in exhibitions in China, the US and Europe.
So why does imagery produced to support a revolutionary ideology half a century ago continue to resonate with current Chinese and Western audiences? What is the China we see between posters of the Mao years and their contemporary consumerist reinventions? How do we explain the diverse responses such imagery evokes? And what does the appeal of the posters of Mao’s China tell us about the country’s ‘red legacy’?
Poster Power explores some of these questions through setting up a visual dialogue between posters produced between the 1950s and the 1970s and their echoes in recent years. With posters from the University of Westminster’s Chinese Poster Collection, Chinese video art, documentary film, photographs, and contemporary items such as playing cards and nightclub advertising, the exhibition invites viewers to explore the posters’ ambiguities of appeal to their audiences. As visual reminders of both autocratic rule and exuberant youthful idealism, they evoke diverse responses, challenging the idea that Cultural Revolution poster propaganda transmitted a single, transparent meaning. These posters’ capacity to inspire ambiguous responses opens up new narratives of what remains a complex period of China’s recent past, and sheds light on its changing significance in contemporary China.
The Philippines is not really managing to get many tourists, at least compared to Thailand and other Asian destinations. To be honest their official marketing is a bit rubbish. So reading something called Travel+Leisure magazine I saw some excellent and art-deco inspired tourism posters designed by Team Manila, a graphic design collective from, eerrr, Manila. Certainly worth a browse as reminiscent of a previous era (see some of the contemporary posters from Cassandre (here). Anyway, you can see all of Team Manila’s excellent efforts here…they’re copyrighted, so you’ll just have to trust me that they’re worth a click.
Robert Bickers and his new book will be out in Suzhou Thursday May 19th – do get along if you can and support a great book and the new chapter of the Royal Asiatic Society in Suzhou.
The Scramble for China: Foreign Devils in the Qing Empire, 1832 – 1914 is a history book that should be required reading for any foreigner interested in or who wants to do business in China. Robert Bickers of Bristol University writes a riveting account of foreign adventures in China during one of the most dramatic episodes in recent history, detailing how the clash of arrogances between China and the West have shaped commercial and political relationships between the two ever since. The Royal Asiatic Society hosts Professor Bickers as he introduces some of the most defining characters and events in history. May 19, 2011, 7pm. The Suzhou Bookworm, Gunxiu Fang 77, Shi Quan Jie. 50 rmb for members; 70 rmb for non-members. Includes one glass of wine or beer. For more information, contact Bill Dodson at 135 0613 6662.