In 1972, something unheard of happened on national television. An Asian American singer-songwriter duo was invited to perform on the widely-watched The Mike Douglas Show by guest hosts John Lennon and Yoko Ono. “They’re beautiful singers,” Lennon said in his introduction. “And they have a story to tell.”
"State Names" is a painting by Jaune Quick-To-See Smith. You immediately recognize the outline of the United States, but at the same time, that map is obscured and made difficult to read. It’s at once recognizable and not recognizable. She describes her use of icons as a ploy, as something that brings the viewer closer, and they think they know what they’re going to see.
The Wuming Painting Collective, formed in Beijing during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), was a clandestine group of artists who defied the authoritarian control over art and expression. In a time when all art was harnessed as propaganda to glorify the state and Chairman Mao, Wuming artists turned their gaze toward everyday life, painting still lifes, street scenes, human figures, and most iconically, serene landscapes.
