Cui Xiuwen (Chinese, –2018)

Cui Xiuwen (Chinese, b.1970) is a photographer best known for her statements on feminism. Born in Haerbin, China, the artist received a BA in Fine Arts from the Northeast Normal University. She later studied at the Central Academy of the Fine Arts, graduating in 1996 with an MFA. Xiuwen creates work that has a message or a story attached.

In 1998, while working with a television crew, the artist became interested in creating new representations of her work. Her first foray into the world of video installations came in 2000, when she exhibited Lady's Room, which showed women inside a restroom at a popular nightclub in Bejing. All of Xiuwen’s work features young women, and many of her pieces since 2001 feature women wearing the same outfit in different parts of Bejing. One of her more popular works is the series One Day in 2004, which shows a woman wearing a red and white outfit. In each image, Xiuwen arranges the woman in a different position. Though the images have some similarities, the expression on the model's face frequently changes.

The artist uses the work to express her commentary on major events in Chinese history. She has plans for more images and video installations in the future that utilize the model. One of her recent works was Sanjie, which recreates The Last Supper with female models. She also creates work that focuses on the experience of growing up as a girl in China. One of her newest pieces uses images of preteen girls and girls in their early teens. Each image shows the young girls in pregnancy suits, which highlights the speed with which girls grow up today.

Xiuwen has taken part in several group exhibitions, including shows at Christie's Rockefeller Center in New York, NY, the Palazzo Reale Museum in Milan, Italy, and the Chengdu Contemporary Art Museum in Chengdu, China. She had two solo shows in 2011 at Eli Klein Fine Art in New York City, NY, and the Blindspot Gallery in Hong Kong, China. Xiuwen currently lives in Beijing, where she continues to work on her photography and video installations.

Timeline

1970
Born in Haerbin
1990
Graduated from Fine Arts Department of Northeast Normal University, Beijing
1996
Graduated from the Oil Painting Department Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing
Lives and works in Beijing

Exhibitions

2013
"Wǒmen (我们): Chinese Contemporary Art," Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO
2013
"A Woman's View: New Chinese Art,” South and East University Galleries, William Paterson University, Wayne, NJ
2013
"Chinese-Chinese American Contemporary Female Artists Living in the Material World," Center Art Gallery at Kaplan Hall, SUNY Orange, Newburgh, NY
2013
"Hot Pot: A Taste of Contemporary Chinese Art," Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro, VT
2012
“Omen: New Chinese Art,” Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2012
“RESTART, Spiritual Realm, Disillusion,” Eli Klein Fine Art, New York, NY
2011
“Existential Emptiness,” Kiang Projects, Atlanta, GA (solo)
2011
“Discourse on Inner Humanity,” Chongqing Tank Loft, Chongqing, China (solo)
2011
“Existential Emptiness,” Eli Klein Fine Art, New York, NY (solo)
2011
“Cui Xiuwen,” Blindspot Gallery, Hong Kong, China (solo)
2011
“An Ode to Discernment,” Eli Klein Fine Art, New York, NY
2011
“Window in the Wall,” Pearl Lam Fine Art, Shanghai, China
2011
“Half the Sky: Women in the New Art of China,” Leonard Pearlstein Gallery, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA
2011
“Scenes from Within: Contemporary Art from China," Blackbridge Hall Gallery, Georgia College, Milledgeville, GA.
2011
“Twenty Years of China’s Visual Arts,” Minsheng Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2011
“Changing Vistas: Creative Duration,” Chengdu Biennale, Chengdu, China
2011
“Video Series: Video Art from the New China,” The Paul J. Getty Museum, Los Angeles, CA
2010
“The Domain of God,” Today Art Museum, Beijing, China
2010
“Existential Emptiness,” Tina Keng Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan
2010
“Trans-Realism,” Christie’s Rockefeller Center, New York, NY
2010
“What is Art,” Times Art Museum, Beijing, China
2010
“Reshaping History - Chinese Art from 2000 to 2009,” Dutch Cultural Center, 2010 World Expo, Shanghai, China
2010
“See From the Movie: The Mark of Contemporary Modern Art and its Construction,” OCT Contemporary Art Center, Shenzhen, China
2009
“China: The Contemporary Rebirth,” Palazzo Reale, Milan, Italy
2009
“The Home Court,” White Box Museum of Art, Beijing, China
2009
“Translucence - Female Contemporary Art from China,” La Centrale Électrique, Brussels, Belgium
2009
“Collision - Experimental Cases of Contemporary Chinese Art,” Central Academy of Fine Arts Museum, Beijing, China
2009
“The Fourth Chengdu Biennale,” Chengdu Contemporary Art Museum, Chengdu, China
2009
“Talk Statement,” The National Art Museum of China, Taiwan, China
2009
“I Have a Dream: An International Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,” Carriage House Center for the Arts, Norwalk, CT
2009
“Enantiomorphous: Art of Female,” White Box Museum of Art, Beijing, China
2008
“Transgressive Body / Reincarnated Flesh,” Tape Club, Berlin, Germany
2008
“Ongoing. Women,” Mozen Art Museum, Beijing, China
2008
“Our Future: Guy & Myriam Ullens Collection,” UCCA, Beijing, China
2008
“China Gold Exhibit,” Maillol Museum, Paris, France
2008
“55 Days in Valencia - Chinese Art Meeting,” Instituto Valencià d’Art Moderno, Valencia, Spain
2008
“Free Zone,” BSI Art Collection, Lugano, Switzerland
2008
“Deep Breath - 19 Samples of Chinese Contemporary Female Artists,” Creek Art Center, Shanghai, China
2007
“China is Close,” Naples Arts Building, Naples, Italy
2007
“Quarter – Cui Xiuwen,” Florence Museum, Florence, Italy
2007
“Angel,” Marella Gallery, Milan, Italy
2007
“China - Facing Reality,” MUMOK Museum Moderner Kunst, Vienna, Austria
2007
“China New Media Arts Exhibition,” Bundesministerin für Unterricht, Kunst und Kultur, Vienna, Austria
2007
“Today’s Documents,” Today Art Museum, Beijing, China
2007
“Floating - New Generation of Art in China,” National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
2007
“The Third Chengdu Biennale,” Chengdu Contemporary Art Museum, Chengdu, China
2007
“Thermocline of Art,” Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie, Karlsruhe, Germany
2007
“Engagements and Estrangements: Video Art from China,” Chinese Contemporary Xchange Art Projects, Toronto, Canada
2007
“Artist in the Wonderland,” The Baltic Sea Cultural Centre, Gdansk, Poland
2007
“The Screen-Eye or the New Image - 100 Videos to Rethink the World,” Casino Museum, Luxembourg
2007
“Historias Interrumpidas,” Video Art Exhibition, Valencia, Spain
2007
“Zoom on China,” Vanvitelliano, Brescia, Italy
2006
“Woman in a Society of Double-Sexuality,” Bangkok, Thailan
2006
“2006 IDAA International Digital Art Award,” QUT Art Museum, Brisbane, Australia
2006
“Seoul International Photography Festival,” Ancient Seoul Station, Seoul, Korea
2006
“Between the Observer and the Observed,” Lian Zhou International Photography Festival, Guangdong, China
2006
“Plato and His Seven Spirits,” OCT Contemporary Art Center, Shenzhen, China
2006
“International Photography Festival,” Moscow, Russia
2006
“The Thirteen: Chinese Video Now,” MoMA PS1, New York, NY
2006
“Post Nora Contemporary Art Exhibition,” Today Art Museum, Beijing, China
2006
“5x7,” The First Ping Yao Photo Biennial, Shanxi, China
2006
“Cui Xiuwen,” DF2 Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2006
“Cui Xiuwen,” Marella Gallery, Beijing, China
2005
“Cui Xiuwen,” Marella Gallery, Beijing, China
2005
“Video Times. 1965-2005. The New Media Collection of the Centre Pompidou,” CaixaForum, Barcelona, Spain; Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, Taiwan; Miami Art Central, Miami, FL; Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Melbourne, Australia; Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Australia
2005
“ElectroScape International New Media Art Exhibition,” Zhengda Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2005
“Contour, 2nd Biennale for Video Art,” Mechelen, Belgium
2005
“Always to the Front - China Contemporary Art,” Guandu Art Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
2005
“Produce Clouds with One Turn of the Hand and Rain with Another,” TS1 Contemporary Art Center, Beijing, China
2005
“Dual Vision,” Lian Zhou International Photography Festival, Guangdong, China
2005
“Archaeology of the Future - The Second Triennial of Chinese Art,” Nanjing Museum, Nanjing, China
2004
“Cui Xiuwen – Kan Xuan,” Museum of Contemporary Art, Bordeaux, France
2004
“Between Past and Future: New Photography and Video from China,” International Center of Photography, New York, NY; Asia Society, New York, NY; Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL; Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, IL; Victoria & Albert Museum, London, England; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, WA; Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, Germany; Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, CA; The Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, Durham, NC
2004
“Untitled: Julia Loktev, Julika, Cui Xiuwen,” Tate Modern, London, UK
2004
“Out the Window - Spaces of Distraction,” The Japan Foundation Forum, Tokyo, Japan
2004
“Spellbound Aura - The New Vision of Chinese Photography,” Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei, Taiwan
2004
“China, the Body Everywhere?,” Musee d’Art Contemporain, Marseilles, France
2004
“The 11th Nippon International Performance Art Festival,” Tokyo, Japan
2004
“Video Generation,” Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris, France
2003
“New Zone Chinese Art,” Zacheta National Art Gallery, Warsaw, Poland
2003
“City_net Asia 2003,” Seoul Museum, Seoul, Korea
2003
“Alors, la Chine?,” Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
2003
“Everyday - Contemporary art from Japan, China, Korea and Thailand,” Kunstforeningen, Copenhagen, Denmark
2003
“The First Israel International Photography Biennale,” Israel
2002
“The First Guangzhou Triennial,” Guangzhou, China
2002
“Under_Construction,” The Japan Foundation Asia Center, Tokyo, Japan
2002
“C'est Pas Du Cinema,” Le Fresnoy - Studio National des Arts Contemporains, Paris, France
2002
“The 2nd Women's Art Festival,” Seoul Women's Community Center, Seoul, Korea
2002
“Run Jump Crawl Walk,” The High Seas Art Center, Beijing, China
2001
China-Germany New Media Art Week, Zang Ku New Media Art Centre, Beijing
2001
BASH (Beijing art gas station)
2001
“Dialogue - Others,” Bari City Museum, Bari, Italy
2001
“Beijing with Contradiction,” Oulun Taidemuseo, Oulu City, Finland; Suomen Valokuvataiteen, Helsinki, Finland
2001
“Up - Rice,” Museum of Site Most, Hong Kong; House for the Arts, Singapore; The National Art Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2001
“Constructed Reality,” Pao Galleries, Hong Kong Arts Center, Hong Kong
2001
“China - Germany New Media Art Week,” Zang Ku New Media Art Center, Beijing, China
2000
“Australia New Media Exhibition,” Australia New Media Art Department, Australia
2000
Today’s News, Art Commune, Hong Kong
2000
About Me, New Vision Gallery, Shanghai, China
2000
Australia New-Media Exhibition, Australia New Media Art Department, Australia
2000
Post-Material, Red Gate Gallery, Beijing
2000
Back Substance Video Exhibit, Red Gate Gallery, Beijing
1999
“Difference of Surprise,” Ryder Art Center, Beijing, China
1998
“Gender Platform,” TEDA Art Museum, Tianjin, China
1998
Sense & Sensibility Art Exhibition, Schoeni Gallery, Hong Kong
1998
Century, Women art exhibition, Collection exhibition, Outlying show, Beijing
1997
Chinese Oil Painting Exhibition of Contemporary Art, Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai
1997
Urban personality • 1997 Art exhibition portfolio, Chengdu, China
1997
“Contemporary Chinese Oil Painting,” Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai, China

Public Collections

Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Belgium
National Museum of China, Beijing,
Pompidou Contemporary Art Center, Paris, France
The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel
Modern Art Museum of Valencia, Spain
BSI Art Foundation, Lugano, Switzerland
AW Asia Foundation, New York, NY

Literature

2007
China Art Book. Uta Grosenick / Caspar Schübbe (Ed.), 680 pages, approx. 850 images, trilingual: Engl./Ger./Chin., Dumont Buchverlag, Cologne 2007.
English (US)

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