The Chinese Portrait: 1860 to the Present

As the first academic publication focused on the Taikang photography collection, this book explores both the mechanics of portraiture and its psychological effects.

"...a significant contribution to the study of Chinese photography." The Art Newspaper

From political leaders to celebrities, photographic portraits exert considerable influence over our reaction to public figures. As the first academic publication focused on the Taikang photography collection, this book explores both the mechanics of portraiture and its psychological effects.

Taikang Space is one of the most important non-profit art institutions in China. Based in Beijing, they focus on contemporary art and photography. The Chinese Portrait: 1860 to the Present is based on the framework of the eponymous exhibition, which ran at Taikang Space from March 2017. This book introduces the curator and researchers involved with the exhibition, as well as researchers such as Shi Zhimin, Jin Yongquan, Liu Jianping, Liu Zhangbolong, who deliver their own unique angles on the topic of portrait photography. The Chinese Portrait: 1860 to the Present also features the curator's interviews with Qia Sijie, Chen Shilin and Zhang Zuo - respectively the personal photographer, standard portrait re-toucher and darkroom technician of Chairman Mao.

Auteur
Tang Xin is the Head of Art Collection at Taikang Insurance Group and the Director of Taikang Space. She graduated from Tianjin Technology University in 1990 and has been an active curator in Beijing since 1997, curating a series of contemporary art exhibitions locally while establishing an artistic exchange with Europe. In 2003, she joined Taikang Life Insurance Ltd, and founded and served as Director of Taikang Space until the present. Xin has also developed a unique systematic research that links socialist Red Revolutionary-period and contemporary art. Her contribution to the history of photography, feminist art, and the discovery of young artists is significant.