Bourgeoisified Proletariat

Yang Zhenzhong, Xu Zhen and Shi Qing

Barely 50 years after the despised “bourgeois intellectual” class was ruthlessly crushed by Chairman Mao’s Cultural Revolution, Chinese artists are openly exploring the idea of “bourgeoisifying” the previously worshipped proletariat (worker). This engrossing full color book documents an impromptu, four-day exhibition put together by 50 of China’s leading artists in 2009, staged in a converted factory across from an Ikea warehouse in the far western suburbs of Shanghai. Organized around 12 probing questions (“State the class background of the last three generations of your family,” for example, or “Summarize your experience of growing up”), the artists present a group of dynamic installations that touch on human rights, political discourse, the role of the arts and other topics. Featuring over 40 artists and collectives.

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