The cultural history of China dates back thousands of years with ideas, images and sayings still propagating through modern culture -- particularly in the West. Yet, the 1960s Cultural Revolution attempted to erase that past for a future that could be shaped. Following Chairman Mao’s 1975 death, artists reset their canvases, but they didn't revert to classical depictions.
Instead, the focus shifted to common aspects of everyday life: workers, soldiers, children, and home. This shift is the subject of “Visions of Humanity,” on display through Sunday, April 14, 2013, at the Phoenix Art Museum, 1625 North Central Avenue. The exhibition's 30 paintings and one short film were collected by Gerry Jones to depict a modern angle on China’s rapidly changing history, a viewpoint he says will remain limited as Chinese artists have already moved to new artistic realms.
Thursdays-Saturdays, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sundays, 12-5 p.m.; Wednesdays, 10 a.m.-9 p.m.; First Friday of every month, 6-10 p.m. Starts: Dec. 15. Continues through April 14, 2012
