Skip navigation

Main menu

  • What's on
  • Art & Artists
    • The Collection
      Artists
      Artworks
      Art by theme
      Media
      Videos
      Podcasts
      Short articles
      Learning
      Schools
      Art Terms
      Tate Research
      Art Making
      Create like an artist
      Kids art activities
      Tate Draw game
  • Visit
  • Shop
Become a Member
  • DISCOVER ART
  • ARTISTS A-Z
  • ARTWORK SEARCH
  • ART BY THEME
  • VIDEOS
  • ART TERMS
  • SCHOOLS
  • TATE KIDS
  • RESEARCH
  • Tate Britain
    Tate Britain Free admission
  • Tate Modern
    Tate Modern Free admission
  • Tate Liverpool + RIBA North
    Tate Liverpool + RIBA North Free admission
  • Tate St Ives
    Tate St Ives Ticket or membership card required
  • FAMILIES
  • ACCESSIBILITY
  • SCHOOLS
  • PRIVATE TOURS
Tate Logo
Become a Member
Tate Modern Conference

Gender in Chinese Contemporary Art

22 February 2018 at 14.00–19.30
​Ma Qiusha, From No.4 Pingyuanli to No.4 Tianqiaobeili, 2007, single channel video, 7'53", image courtesy of the artist

​Ma Qiusha, From No.4 Pingyuanli to No.4 Tianqiaobeili, 2007, single channel video, 7'53", image courtesy of the artist

This international symposium explored the role that gender has played in the development of Chinese contemporary art

Co-organised by Tate Research Centre: Asia and Central Academy of Fine Arts China, the symposium was split into two sessions. The first gave a critical overview of the subject, including a paper by Monica Merlin that provided a history of contemporary art by women in China, a paper by Ros Holmes that took up the new condition of artistic creation and distribution through digital and mediated spaces, and a panel discussion moderated by Wenny Teo. The second session focussed on individual practices, with artist presentations from Nabuqi, Ma Qiusha and Ye Funa followed by a discussion moderated by Song Xiaoxia.

By engaging the history of women’s artistic production in China, this symposium sought to recuperate an often-elided narrative, while also asking what it means to be a woman artist working in China today, and whether gender still matters in contemporary practice.

Gender in Chinese Contemporary Art was part of the multi-venue collaborative exhibition NOW: A Dialogue on Female Chinese Contemporary Artists (Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art, Manchester, 16 February – 29 April 2018), which examined the positions adopted by women artists within the ecology of contemporary China. Through a series of exhibitions, commissions and events, NOW explored diverse artistic practices which transcend notions of gender difference to offer multi-faceted perspectives on contemporary social realities.

Programme

14.00 Welcome by Tate and Central Academy of Fine Arts China

Session 1: Critical Framework

14.20 Introduction by Sook-Kyung Lee, Tate Research Centre: Asia

14.30 Rethinking Women Artists and Gender in Contemporary Chinese Art
Monica Merlin, Birmingham City University

15.00 No More Nice Girls: Celebrating the Ugly and the Artless in China’s Online Spaces
Ros Holmes, Christ Church, Oxford University

15.30 Discussion and Q&A moderated by Wenny Teo, The Courtauld Institute of Art

16.00 Break

Session 2: Voices of NOW

16.30 Introduction by Wang Chunchen, Central Academy of Fine Arts China

16.45 Nabuqi

17.00 Ma Qiusha

17.15 Ye Funa

17.30 Discussion and Q&A moderated by Song Xiaoxia, Central Academy of Fine Arts China

18.30 – 19.30 Reception

Gender in Chinese Contemporary Art was co-organised by Tate Research Centre: Asia and China Central Academy of Fine Arts. Supported by the China National Arts Fund and British Council, Beijing.

Tate Research Centre: Asia has been generously supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Tate Modern

Starr Cinema

Bankside
London SE1 9TG
Plan your visit

Date & Time

22 February 2018 at 14.00–19.30

Find out more

  • Wenny Teo, Ros Holmes and Monica Merlin on a discussion panel for Gender in Chinese Contemporary Art, Tate Modern, 22 February 2018

    Gender in Chinese Contemporary Art

    Read Sophie Guo’s report on the international symposium ‘Gender in Chinese Contemporary Art’

Artwork
Close

Join in

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
Sign up to emails

Sign up to emails

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Tate’s privacy policy

About

  • About us
  • Our collection
  • Terms and copyright
  • Governance
  • Picture library
  • ARTIST ROOMS
  • Tate Kids

Support

  • Tate Collective
  • Members
  • Patrons
  • Donate
  • Corporate
  • My account
  • Press
  • Jobs
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Cookies
  • Contact
© The Board of Trustees of the Tate Gallery, 2025
All rights reserved