Read The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China

The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China

Laikwan Pang

4.9/5 (29376 ratings)

Description:"The Distorting Mirror" analyzes the multiple and complex ways in which urban Chinese subjects saw themselves interacting with the new visual culture that emerged during the turbulent period between the 1880s and the 1930s. The media and visual forms examined include lithography, photography, advertising, film, and theatrical performances. Urbanites actively engaged with and enjoyed this visual culture, which was largely driven by the subjective desire for the empty promises of modernity - promises comprised of such abstract and fleeting concepts as new, exciting, and fashionable. Detailing and analyzing the trajectories of development of various visual representations, Laikwan Pang emphasizes their interactions. In doing so, she demonstrates that visual modernity was not only a combination of independent cultural phenomena, but also a partially coherent sociocultural discourse whose influences were seen in different and collective parts of the culture. The work begins with an overall historical account and theorization of a new lithographic pictorial culture developing at the end of the nineteenth century and an examination of modernity's obsession with the investigation of the real. Subsequent chapters treat the fascination with the image of the female body in the new visual culture; entertainment venues in which this culture unfolded and was performed; how urbanites came to terms with and interacted with the new reality; and the production and reception of images, the dynamics between these two being a theme explored throughout the book. Modernity, as the author shows, can be seen as spectacle. At the same time, she demonstrates that, although the excessiveness of this spectacle captivated the modern subject, it did not completely overwhelm or immobilize those who engaged with it. After all, she argues, they participated in and performed with this ephemeral visual culture in an attempt to come to terms with their own new, modern self.We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China. To get started finding The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
Our library is the biggest of these that have literally hundreds of thousands of different products represented.

Pages: —

Format: PDF, EPUB & Kindle Edition

Publisher: —

Release: —

ISBN: 0824830938

Description: "The Distorting Mirror" analyzes the multiple and complex ways in which urban Chinese subjects saw themselves interacting with the new visual culture that emerged during the turbulent period between the 1880s and the 1930s. The media and visual forms examined include lithography, photography, advertising, film, and theatrical performances. Urbanites actively engaged with and enjoyed this visual culture, which was largely driven by the subjective desire for the empty promises of modernity - promises comprised of such abstract and fleeting concepts as new, exciting, and fashionable. Detailing and analyzing the trajectories of development of various visual representations, Laikwan Pang emphasizes their interactions. In doing so, she demonstrates that visual modernity was not only a combination of independent cultural phenomena, but also a partially coherent sociocultural discourse whose influences were seen in different and collective parts of the culture. The work begins with an overall historical account and theorization of a new lithographic pictorial culture developing at the end of the nineteenth century and an examination of modernity's obsession with the investigation of the real. Subsequent chapters treat the fascination with the image of the female body in the new visual culture; entertainment venues in which this culture unfolded and was performed; how urbanites came to terms with and interacted with the new reality; and the production and reception of images, the dynamics between these two being a theme explored throughout the book. Modernity, as the author shows, can be seen as spectacle. At the same time, she demonstrates that, although the excessiveness of this spectacle captivated the modern subject, it did not completely overwhelm or immobilize those who engaged with it. After all, she argues, they participated in and performed with this ephemeral visual culture in an attempt to come to terms with their own new, modern self.We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China. To get started finding The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
Our library is the biggest of these that have literally hundreds of thousands of different products represented.

Special Offer | $0.00

Special Offer! | $0.00

The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China

The Distorting Mirror: Visual Modernity in China

More Books

Masculinities and Hong Kong Cinema by Laikwan Pang (2005-03-01)

Masculinities and Hong Kong Cinema by Laikwan Pang (2005-03-01)

Creativity and Its Discontents: China's Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Rights Offenses

Creativity and Its Discontents: China's Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Rights Offenses

The Art of Cloning: Creative Production During China's Cultural Revolution

The Art of Cloning: Creative Production During China's Cultural Revolution

[Building a New China in Cinema: The Chinese Left-wing Cinema Movement, 1932-1937] [Author: Pang, Laikwan] [May, 2002]

[Building a New China in Cinema: The Chinese Left-wing Cinema Movement, 1932-1937] [Author: Pang, Laikwan] [May, 2002]

Creativity and Its Discontents: Chinaa??s Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Rights Offenses by Laikwan Pang (2012-01-11)

Creativity and Its Discontents: Chinaa??s Creative Industries and Intellectual Property Rights Offenses by Laikwan Pang (2012-01-11)