China Modern: Designing 20th Century Popular Culture

“The takeaway for our visitors is understanding how dynamic China is and how that shift from capitalism to communism felt day to day as seen in people’s homes and through graphic designers whose goal was to sell something, either products or politics.”

– Bridget Bray, assistant curator, Pacific Asia Museum, excerpt from Los Angeles Times article

“Sometimes, a litchi box is more than a litchi box. In a designer’s hands, it can become a work of art, a cultural artifact or a piece of propaganda.”

– Karen Wada, LA Times

The dynamism of 20th century China was on full display in China Modern, which chronicled the country’s changing character through a celebration of its graphic art and material culture, illustrating how both political ideologies and cultural values are transmitted through conventional objects. The more than 180 objects—posters, calendars, litchi boxes, porcelain figures, trade cards and handbills, as well as advertisements for films, fashions, and toys—blurred the boundaries  between capitalist material culture and communist state propaganda, showing how the art of the sell evolved (or didn’t) throughout decades of social and cultural upheaval. Curator Kalim Winata believes that “these everyday materials have been the small steps by which great cultural shifts are made.”

This is the first exhibition to track graphic art and product design from the Qing Dynasty through the tumult of the 20th century, while also reflecting on the impact advertising art has had on the contemporary experience.

China Modern was organized by Pacific Asia Museum and toured by International Arts & Artists.

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