Elizabeth compares and contrasts January 19, 2012

Didn't you always hate that as an exam question? "Compare and contrast the French and American Revolutions". Groaaannn. You just knew your hand was going to cramp up writing out that answer. Don't worry, no essays required here. 

The places up for comparison and contrast were the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) and the Shanghai Art Museum. Organized by the American Women's Club of Shanghai (AWCS), we started our tour at the MOCA, a former greenhouse inside People's Park. Yes, you have seen People's Park before, just not in its entirety. That's OK, neither have I. Oh, all right, I'll put it on the "To See" list. Here's the tour blurb from the AWCS website:

This unique tour will explore the dynamics between a state institutionalized modern museum and a privately created contemporary museum. Led by Art Historian Julie Chun who has lectured at San Jose State University and curated exhibition and installation in the San Francisco Bay Area, this enlightening walk-through of Shanghai's two museums in People's Park is guaranteed to leave an indelible mark on how you view exhibitions and museums in Asia and elsewhere.

MOCA exterior

The artist exhibiting was Chen Man.

Here's info about her from someone else's website:

Beijing photographer Chen Man (b.1980) is the leading photographer of her generation. Over the past seven years she has contributed to some of the world’s best-known lifestyle magazines and produced acclaimed campaigns for international brands such as Motorola and Adidas.

Chen gained prominence in 2003 when she completed a series of ground-breaking covers for the China-based design and arts magazine Vision. Although then still a student at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, the images she produced crashed the conservatism of China’s media industry at the time and captured the spirit of creative possibility that was driving a new generation of artists and designers.

Chen made eight covers for Vision. Each image is based on an original studio shot that is digitally enhanced in post production. However, it is the eclectic range of motifs and influences in her work, from Mickey Mouse and Manga to the Three Gorges Dam and the Great Wall, that best characterize her aesthetic.

Over the past decade, the growing number of partnerships between foreign and domestic publishers has provided Chen with a wide platform to develop her career. As well as Vision she has produced shoots for Vogue, Bazaar,Esquire, Cosmopolitan and Modern Weekly, among others. The development of Chen’s work can therefore be seen to closely track the development of China’s media and advertising industries as well as the growing sophistication of its art scene, and the frequent points of intersection between the two.

In less than 10 years, Chen has established herself as perhaps China’s most successful commercial photographer, and certainly China’s most successful woman photographer ever.  The latter fact underlines the profound changes that China’s cultural landscape has undergone and the increasingly prominent role that women artists are playing in it.

One of her commercial photos

Another

(Captain Obvious stikes again.)

 The lower level of MOCA.

I took these photos as I went up the ramp that lead to the second level.

On the second level, Chen Man had a series of photos inspired 

by the five traditional Chinese elements.

See if you can figure out which ones are which. I only chose two.

The fantastical take

 The modern take

The shape of the frame hints at the element. I sussed that out all on my own. 

So proud of myself! Doesn't take much, does it?

Got it? The first two were earth, the last ones wood.

 I know you're going to scroll back now and review. Go on. I'll wait.

Before we moved on to the Shanghai Art Museum, our AWCS guide, Julie, told us that the MOCA is a privately owned museum. Bear this in mind as we check out one of the exhibits at the Shanghai Art Museum, just a short walk away. You have seen the exterior of this museum before. Yes, you have. It houses the restaurant Kathleen's 5 and is the former clubhouse of the Shanghai Race Club. 

Here is one interesting detail you haven't seen previously.

A recurring motif on the stair railings

The artist exhibiting on the main floor of the Shanghai Art Museum used pointillism, a relatively modern European technique, to depict traditional Chinese subjects.

I get such a kick out of pointillism.

Some of the pieces were huge.

Now that's a lot of dots! 

There were more paintings on the upper floors, but this exhibit was my favourite at the Shanghai Art Museum. The other pieces of art were interesting, but not remarkable. The overall winner for me was Chen Man's work in the MOCA. Her photos would never have been displayed in a state-owned museum. Although both museums' exhibits had Chinese subjects, one was clearly far more imaginative and provocative. Guess which one I preferred?