Downtown museum gives space to artifacts from Cultural Revolution
By Will Bowen | Downtown News
Chairman Mao Tse-Tung wrote in 1942, “There is no such thing as art for art’s sake, art that stands above classes [or] art that is detached from or independent of politics. Proletarian art and literature are part of the whole revolutionary cause; they are the cogs and wheels in the revolutionary machine.”
There is currently an opportunity to ponder these statements and contemplate how art functions in culture at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Extension of the San Diego Chinese Historical Museum. The new exhibit, “Seeing Red: Art Amid Turmoil in the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution Tradition,” is housed at the Extension building, located at 328 J St. in the Gaslamp Quarter’s Old China Town area.
Those that love everything about Chinese culture will also find the exhibit’s title fascinating and an important educational experience, especially if viewed in conjunction with the artifacts and exhibits at the Historical Museum, located at 404 Third St.
The current exhibit at the museum’s extension is part of a traveling show depicting the range of arts and crafts, as well as plates, buttons, bags, books, prints and posters from the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The entire exhibit is from the personal collection of Todd Cornell, a Sinophile, who spent over 20 years on the Chinese mainland working as a manager for corporations such as the Hilton, United Airlines and Corning Glass.
Cornell began his collection in the 1990s with a single copy of Chairman Mao’s “Little Red Book,” which was required reading on college campuses during the student revolution in America during the late 1960s and early 70s. Cornell continued to collect over the years, purchasing most of his material in Chinese flea market. He did this not out of political interest or motivation, but as part of his on going fascination with Chinese art and culture.
Cornell said the exhibit does not condone what happened during the Cultural Revolution, when millions of people suffered and died after the upheaval in traditional society. Press material provided by the Museum said “The Cultural Revolution was a period of great strife and hardship for many of China’s citizens. Urban intellectuals often were criticized and sent to the countryside to learn the peasant lifestyle. The education system was disrupted, and many people today are still feeling the effects.”
Cornell said he thinks it is important viewers examine the art of this period, which was used as propaganda.
“People should come and see the exhibit to examine the colors, motifs and techniques that were used in this highly stylized art,” Cornell said. “Some of the prints from etchings and woodcuts are very beautiful and there is the ever presence of the color red. I hope that viewers will be able to examine the materials in the show without labeling them as good or bad. Hopefully, this will lead to a healing process as to what occurred during this period of Chinese history.”
Alexander Chuang, the executive director of the museum and a former engineer for the Apollo Space Program, concurred; saying this is a highly sensitive exhibit. He said he hopes people will not misinterpret the Museum’s purpose or intention.
“The images of physically healthy and emotionally happy Chinese, beaming under the guidance of the Red Guard, depicted in much of the art work, is a far cry from the truth of the dire reality of everyday life in China at the time, when over 30 million people perished,” Chuang said. “Nonetheless, we think that this was an important period in Chinese history and that the art of the period deserves our attention.”
The Chinese Historical Museum and the Sun Yat-Sen extension are open Tuesday through Saturday 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday noon to 4 p.m. Admission is $4, though Museum members and children under 12 are free.
For more information, visit sdchm.org or call 619-338-9888.
