WHO: Sabine Eckmann, the William T. Kemper Director and chief curator, Kemper Art Museum; artist Wang Qingsong; art collector Larry Warsh
WHAT: Exhibition opening, “Looking Back Toward the Future: Contemporary Photography from China”
WHERE: Kemper Art Museum, WashU
EVENTS: Panel discussion at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, Steinberg Hall Auditorium; opening reception to immediately follow at 6:30 p.m. in the museum.
MEDIA PREVIEW AND AVAILABILITY: To preview the exhibition or arrange interviews with Eckmann, Warsh or Wang, contact Liam Otten at 314-874-6331 or Liam_Otten@wustl.edu.
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION:
“Looking Back Toward the Future” explores how a generation of avant-garde Chinese artists used large-scale photography and ephemeral performance art to visualize changing urban and social landscapes, capturing and criticizing Westernization and the disappearance of traditional Chinese history and culture.
The exhibition is occasioned by a major gift of Chinese photography to the Kemper Art Museum by Larry Warsh, who began collecting Chinese photography more than two decades ago, during a trip to Beijing. “These artists were grappling with some of the most critical issues of their time, and yet their work remains little seen, both in China and in the West,” Warsh said.
Wang Qingsong is known for creating highly stylized photographic sets that suggest futuristic stage or film performances. In 2013, he represented China at the 55th Venice Biennale.
“Looking Back Toward the Future”” will remain on view through July 27.
DIRECTIONS AND PARKING: The Kemper Art Museum is located at the east end of WashU’s Danforth Campus, near the intersection of Skinker and Lindell boulevards. Validated parking will be available in the university’s east end garage. Entrances to the garage are located on Forsyth Boulevard and Forest Park Parkway, just west of the respective intersections with Skinker.
