Abstract
This article makes a comparison between two environmental art projects: 'Keepers of the Waters' (1995), a public art festival aiming to raise public awareness about the pollution problems of the main river in Chengdu, and 'Everyone's East Lake' (2010), a public call for art action in response to an incident of commercial development of an important lake in Wuhan. The early strategies and characteristics of environmental activism in China led to the success of the first art project, and the constrains were testified and confronted in the second project. This article will discuss the two projects in detail regarding their political stances, modes of participation and the use of artistic language. I suggest that an emerging 'political engagement' mode is more public and empowering than the 'political innocence' mode developed in the 1990s.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 315-323 |
| Journal | Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art |
| Volume | 3 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Dec 2016 |
Bibliographical note
Full text of this publication does not contain sufficient affiliation information. With consent from the author(s) concerned, the Research Unit(s) information for this record is based on the existing academic department affiliation of the author(s).UN SDGs
This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
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SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
Research Keywords
- contemporary Chinese art
- performance art
- environmental activism
- boundary-spanning contention
- public art
- public participation
- NGOS
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