Afterlives of Chinese Xuānchuán huà (Propaganda Posters), 1949-1976

Although renewed interest in propaganda posters from Mao’s era (1949-1976) is receiving a lot of scholarly attention from collectors and art historians, there is a dearth of research done on the afterlives of these posters, referred as a piece of ephemera, produced in certain historical contexts for a specific audience.

Removed from their past and their original context, these posters are being collected and widely exhibited in the 21st century. Therefore, this paper critically examines the ongoing collection and exhibition practises of mainland China, Hong Kong and Europe. It investigates and articulates the knowledge system around these artworks by employing the framework of transexperience by Melissa Chiu. It contrasts and compares the collections and exhibition curatorship in mainland China to Hong Kong and Europe. By examining a diverse range of texts from catalogues and artwork descriptions to historical overviews, this paper explores how text engages with the visual. The study aims to engender a nuanced awareness of continuities and points of departure of exhibition cultures across nations, time and space. Furthermore, it provides a historical context within which the collections were built. The analysis focuses on authentic representation and differentiation in collections of academic institutions, which play a huge role in understanding a different culture.

This work will contribute to the growing body of scholarship on contextualizing the complex trajectories of both the Chinese art market and the art world.