Facing China

Facing China is an exploration of the portrait arts in China from the dynastic to the modern and contemporary, in painting, sculpture, photography and video.

The book focuses on truth and memory in the portraiture process, from encounters between subject, portrait and artist, to broader familial, social and political arenas. It also examines the influence of location on portrait production, reception and display, from tombs, ancestral shrines, temples, gardens and palace halls to public and private spaces.

Featuring 150 fine illustrations, with 100 in colour, Facing China has much to say to specialists in the field as well as general readers interested in Chinese art.