Mao

Model: Du Juan (IMG)
Photographer: Quentin Shih (a.k.a. Shi Xiao Fan)
Stylist: Unknown

Chairman Mao is one of the most recognizable figure in the history of China, especially in the West. His face is on everything from t-shirts to coffee cups to Chinese contemporary art. I visited Beijing's 798 Art Space, and noticed that a lot of art are in some ways related to Mao or the propaganda posters from the 1950s. It has gone to a level where Mao has become so cliché that I don't appreciate much of those work by artists, even if they are conceptual enough. Yet I came across this editorial spread called Revolution from Vogue China's April 2010 issue. Quentin Shih, the photographer successfully merges concept and technique in his fashion photography which I find very amazing.

People usually see commercial art as 'fake' art, that the commercial artist is never true to him or herself because of boundaries. Yes indeed there are boundaries, but those who can break the boundaries and create quality work that not only looks good but have a strong idea I really admire.