The Proto-Minjian Avant-Garde

This chapter starts with proto-minjian avant-gardes Mao Xuhui and Huang Yong Ping to track how the radical changes of the public psyche in the 1980s became the substance of their artistic practices. It argues that the post-Mao minjian transformed both the subjectivities and methods of Mao and Huang as they mourn or embrace such transformation in their works. Mao's and Huang's art practices illustrate, respectively, the object-oriented and participation-oriented aspects of the minjian avant-garde. While Mao's collages assemble ready-made imageries that correspond to fragmented subjectivities, Huang's attempts to display and enact art outside of museums tested the public's tolerance of the avant-garde. The chapter highlights how both artists instigated the concept of art exhibitions and shown that the wall between “fine art” and minjian visual culture could be torn down easily.