Modern Art for a Modern China: The Chinese Intellectual Debate, 1900–​1930

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How did art reform fit into the many initiatives for social and cultural change that contributed to the New Cultural Movement that transformed the Chinese cultural landscape during the Republican period? "Modern art for a modern China" was the rallying cry of Chinese intellectuals, many of whom were artists, critics, writers, poets and educators. Wang describes how these groups discussed and implanted changes in China’s conception and practice of art. She demonstrates how art reforms fit into the many initiatives for social and cultural change that contributed to the New Cultural Movement that transformed the Chinese cultural landscape during the Republican period. In doing so, she analyses two key areas in the intellectual history of Republican China: China’s art reform in the early decades of the twentieth century; and the connection and intersection between colonialism, nationalism and cosmopolitanism, including their direct impact on the development of art and art practice in China. Modern Art for a Modern China is an invaluable resource for scholars and students of China’s twentieth-century intellectual history and art history. Cover Half Title Series Information Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of contents Acknowledgements Figures Preface 1 Cai Yuanpei: His vision for art reform in China Cai Yuanpei’s vision for art The Ministry of Education’s art reforms project Concepts of art and art practice The professionalisation of art practice, art education and exhibitions Cultural diplomacy The ramifications of art reforms Notes References 2 The other Lu Xun: Graphic designer, book collector and art reformer The individual: Lu Xun’s continuous interest in art The government official: Lu Xun in the Ministry of Education “Draft Proposal on the Dissemination of Art” National Children’s Art Exhibition (1914) Designing significant emblems Other duties The public intellectual: Lu Xun’s engagement in art Lu Xun’s book collection: the all-encompassing knowledge structure Visits to exhibitions Writings on art and translations Summary Notes References 3 Xu Zhimo: Public intellectual and art reformer Formative years Promoting art as a public intellectual Xu Zhimo and the first national art exhibition Intellectual connections between the verbal and the visual Notes References 4 Art Exhibition, art reforms and the debates The first national art exhibition and art reforms The “perplexity” debate Art, art criticism and social responsibility Ink painting Carvings and sculptures Images reproduced in Art Exhibition Miscellany The significance of Art Exhibition Notes References 5 Chinese art students in Lyon: Individuals and institutions Lyon Art School L’Institut Franco-Chinois de Lyon Women students at Lyon Wang Jingyuan Pan Yuliang Li Weici Chen Zhixiu Fang Yun Fan Xinqun Liu Shufang Su Mei Historical implications Prominent male alumni from Lyon Chang Shuhong Wang Linyi and Lü Sibai Chen Shiwen The Association of Chinese Artists in France Sun Fuxi Hua Tianyou Qiu Daiming Lyon and China’s quest for modernity Notes References 6 Afterword: Questioning the agency of the semi-colonised Impact–response: the pertinence of semi-coloniality Semi-coloniality and colonial modernity The question of agency Notes References Index