Remaking Beijing

Product Description

Remaking Beijing traces China's modern & contemporary experience, focusing on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, still the most exalted space in China today. Wu Hung describes the square's transformation from a proscribed imperial space to a public arena of political expression, & from a monumental Communist complex to a holy relic of the Maoist era. For over half a century, since the square became the symbolic center of the new socialist capital, it has determined the city's development; in examining the square, the author examines the city as a whole. The author also explores the importance of Tiananmen as a locus of art production in China: as the site for Mao's standard portrait on Tiananmen's facade; as the location of museums & monuments showcasing masterpieces of socialist art; & as a parade ground for extravagant National Day celebrations representing the revolutionary masses. In recent years it has also inspired unofficial artists to create a large body of works
- paintings, photographs, real & simulated performances
- which challenge its authority. Using a wide range of sources including government archives, newspapers, photography, architecture, literature, art exhibitions & advertisements, this book explores the history & complex meaning of Beijing's public spaces. As a native of Beijing, Wu Hung witnessed the construction & transformation of the city; in this book he combines historical enquiry with his own personal experience, offering a case study of a particular type of modern metropolis whose construction is intertwined with the creation of a political nation-state.