Anxiety Aesthetics: Maoist Legacies in China, 1978–1985

Anxiety Aesthetics is the first book to explore a prehistory of contemporaneity in China through the emergence of creative practices in the aftermath of the Mao era. It argues that socialist residues underwrite contemporary Chinese art, complicating its theorization through Maoism. Jennifer Dorothy Lee traces historical events and controversies in late 1970s and early 1980s Beijing, offering a fresh critical frame for reading protest ephemera and artistic interventions in the Beijing Spring social movement. She demonstrates how socialist aesthetic theories and structures shaped young artists' engagement with space and selfhood and occupied the minds of figures looking to reform the nation.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 208 pages
Publication date: 06 February 2024
Publisher: University of California Press

Anxiety Aesthetics is a groundbreaking work that delves into the prehistory of contemporaneity in China by examining the emerging creative practices that emerged in the aftermath of the Mao era. Jennifer Dorothy Lee argues that socialist residues continue to underwrite contemporary Chinese art, complicating its theorization through Maoism. Through a meticulous exploration of historical events and controversies in late 1970s and early 1980s Beijing, Lee traces the intricate connections between socialist aesthetics and the art of the time.

Lee offers a fresh critical framework for interpreting protest ephemera and artistic interventions during the Beijing Spring social movement of 1978–80. She also delves into the heated debates that took place in institutional contexts prior to the 85 New Wave, shedding light on the ways in which socialist aesthetic theories and structures shaped the minds of those seeking to reform the nation. By focusing on this fleeting moment, Lee provides a new historical foundation for the unprecedented global exposure of contemporary Chinese art today.

Through her meticulous research and insightful analysis, Lee demonstrates how socialist aesthetic theories and structures continued to shape the engagement of young artists with both space and selfhood. She also highlights the ways in which these ideas resonated with figures who were actively engaged in shaping the nation's future. Anxiety Aesthetics is a vital contribution to the field of art history, offering a fresh perspective on the complex relationship between politics, aesthetics, and cultural identity in China.

Weight: 574g
Dimension: 177 x 254 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520393783