Hutong, the gridlike alleyway neighborhoods most prominent in China’s capital, are an interesting part of Beijing life. It’s here you’ll find the city at its most raw: a mix of residential homes and small community eateries and shops, people going about their day without a care for passerby and visitors. Its here, too, you’ll find… Read More Capturing the Hutong | Liu Cong’s “Wandering”
Deep in the backstreets of Guangzhou, through twisting and turning neighborhood lanes a taxi can hardly fit through, there’s an old factory building. But within its light tan walls, everything is repurposed. The arts have taken over a place once sworn to industry. Through a small entrance, and through a twisting maze-like gallery — literally called… Read More Book & Fun | A Haven for Art Books in Guangzhou
Beijing’s underground music scene is often associated exclusively with rock — a simple Google search can attest to that. But the city’s musical portfolio has more to it than meets the eye. There are gentler, more electric sounds making waves in China’s capital, aided along by a distinct DIY cassette label. nugget records comes from… Read More nugget records | Lo-fi in Beijing via Cassette
The sight of a giant scarlet “70”, screaming for attention outside the reserved Chinese Deco facade of the museum, signaled to me what could be expected inside. It seemed not even the world of art was safe from this monumental celebration. The 2019 anniversary of the Founding of the People’s Republic of China, as the… Read More A Deeper Shade of Red | Chinese Art from the Interwar Period
I love an exhibition or a show that can really make me think. While all art is bound to make you think in some shape or form, more often than not the pieces come to this generic, disappointing conclusion that belies the shallowness and, quite possibly, lack of thought the artist put into their work.… Read More La dépense | An Exploration of Unnecessary Consumption
Gentle hues and shadows forming twisted figures of individuals juxtaposed with the violence and diversity of nature. Waves and sunsets and mountains and sudden rain. All in a space complimenting the works, with patterns drawing to mind Zen gardens on the ground, more mountains and figures on the wall; all combining to reveal the floating… Read More A Journey to the Floating World | Ukiyo-e in Shanghai
Every time I used to visit Shanghai while living in Ningbo for the past few years, I’d stay at a cozy hostel along Suzhou Creek near Xinzhua Station on Line 1. The walk to the hostel always took me along a stone-covered road by the river, South Suzhou Road, with a few quiet cafes and… Read More Pastel Colored Past & Melancholy Present | Different Perspectives Along Suzhou Creek
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