"Mao for sale" puts China and its art world in focus

Standing too close renders it a splotchy mess, but take a step back and a huge blurry, distorted image of Mao emerges. Images of power seen from below - a peoples perspective. You might think that the main focus of these paintings was to mock authority but, as a conceptual artist, Pia Johanson´s work is more about criticizing the art world, especially Chinese contemporary art.

When Shanghaiist met her at The Studio, she explained:

You find very little painting in China. The technical skill is perfect, but there´s a lack of content. Artists meet the demand, there´s no conceptualism behind it.

She took the example of Chinese artist Yue Minjun, whose art is profit driven and completely based on replications of Yue Minjun´s own obnoxiously smiling self-portraits. These images can be found in myriads of shops, and are produced in a studio of assistants. The question Pia Johanson wants to raise is: at what point in an artist´s career are they no longer expected to paint their own work?

She chose to investigate this by using herself and her own art as a tester. Her paintings, hanging at The Studio right this moment, are in fact painted by someone else and the images has gone through a long process of reproduction and replication. They are painted by hired artists, who replicated them from photos taken in a deliberately distorted angle from a photo book with Chinese propaganda posters.

"My work is not my own" as she puts it. No, and yet the concept is hers. As such, Pia Johanson´s work asks many interesting and urgent questions.

Speaking of urgent, as Shanghai is getting ready and shaping up before next year´s expo, old rural paintings of Mao are being painted over at the speed of light. Should we see this as a good sign, telling us that China is becoming a modern country, or do we regard it as a part of a sad and thoughtless neglect of China's cultural heritage? Street photographer Elke Martini, who is also part of the “Mao for sale” exhibition, doesn´t take sides. She is merely an observer.

Her photographs show the old and hidden streets of Shanghai - people moving about, living their lives without taking notice of the weathered faces of Mao who keep watch from the walls behind.

She said of her experiences exploring old Shanghai - the disappearing Shanghai:

People don´t see them anymore.

For example, up until recently you could see these paintings in the French concession. Two months ago I left for the States, and when I came back five weeks later, they were all gone... It´s presenting an image.

The “Mao for Sale” exhibition ends June 26. It´s a bit tricky to find The Studio as it lies hidden behind the main street of Julu lu. Just look for a small sign saying “Exhibition”, and you´re there!