Written on the Walls: How Graffiti in China Went Mainstream
With artists enjoying lucrative commissions from governments and brands, and attracting millions of followers online, some are asking whether China’s graffiti art has forgotten its counter-cultural roots
Coloring Outside the Digital Lines: Why Chinese NFT Artists Look Abroad
Regulations and low quality in the Chinese digital scene has led the brightest of the nation’s crypto-artists to pin their hopes on international markets
Collecting Trends: How Middle Class Buyers Influence China’s Art Market
Young, middle class collectors are bending China’s art market to their own tastes
Photo Shop: Art in the Age of the Influencer
Museums in China increasingly rely on social media to bring in visitors, but there is a cost to going viral
A Token Project: Can NFT Art Flourish in China?
NFTs are increasingly popular in China’s art world, but their dubious legal status may stop them from taking off
Zhao Xiaoli Blurs the Line Between Online Influencer and Artist
With millions of followers, Zhao Xiaoli is China’s most popular artist on Douyin—so why do art critics not rate her work?
Beyond High Fashion: Li Xiaoliang’s New Way of Seeing
Beyond a glitzy career in fashion photography, Li Xiaoliang points his lens at gritty Chinese realities and faded Western illusions
Life, Entangled: Artist Liang Shaoji on Working with Silkworms
Artist Liang Shaoji talks to TWOC about using the symbolism of silk to lay bare Earth’s evolution
Children of the Corn: How Pan Dehai’s “Fatties” Distort the Past and Present
Painter Pan Dehai talks with TWOC about the ’85 New Wave movement and the reception of his cute but satiric political works
What’s Next for China’s Once-Thriving Artist Communes?
Contemporary art battles to find a place to grow in the face of regulations and rising property prices