Surrealism from Paris to Shanghai

Surrealism in China initially gained a foothold in Shanghai’s former French concession during the early 1930s, disseminated by returning Chinese students who had directly encountered the movement in Paris and Tokyo. Shanghai surrealism adopted a dialectical form, resonating with the modus operandi of the Parisian movement as well as China’s traditional belief system of Daoism. Reconciling the thought of Freud and Marx, Surrealism subsumed the multiple contradictions that divided Republican Shanghai, East and West, colonial and cosmopolitan, ancient and modern, navigating the porous boundaries that separate dream and reality. Shanghai surrealists were not rigid followers of their Parisian counterparts. Indeed, they commingled Surrealist techniques with elements of traditional Chinese iconography. Rather than revolving around a centralized group with a leader, Shanghai Surrealism was a much more diffuse entity, disseminated across copious different periodicals, avant-garde groups, and the entire gamut of political ideology, ranging from Nationalist party supporters to Communist sympathizers. Ultimately, the pervasive presence of Surrealism in Shanghai can be attributed to a wide range of factors: a yearning for national renewal, the stagnancy of the guohua genre, anticolonial protest, the rise of Western individualism, circumnavigating censorship and experimentation in search of a unique artistic voice. This is the first English-language book dedicated to introducing Chinese Surrealism, using periodicals and other primary sources to reveal the mutual cultural influences between China and Western avant-garde, and broaden the scope of Surrealist studies beyond Eurocentric prisms. 

Lauren Walden is a research fellow at Birmingham City University.

Lauren Walden: Leverhulme Early Career Fellow in Contemporary Chinese Art

‘The case for Surrealist art as a significant part of Chinese art history, until recently had seldom been proposed. With Lauren Walden’s book we have the first dedicated study to address the subject. In doing so, it takes a thoroughly scholarly approach, while at the same time remaining clear, concise, and informative in its presentation. Altogether this book is a pleasure to read.’

—Paul Bevan, research associate, School of Oriental and African Studies, London; associate, Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Oxford

‘Dr Lauren Walden’s book delves into the underexplored realm of Surrealism in Republican Shanghai’s art world. Through an insightful examination of painting, photography, and other genres, she reveals the unique transformations Surrealism underwent as it travelled from Europe to Shanghai, exploring its complex relationship with traditional Chinese iconography. Dr Walden illuminates how Shanghai’s Surrealism reconciled the contradictions inherent in this Eastern colonial metropolis, making a groundbreaking contribution to the scholarship on Republican Shanghai art.’

—Jane Zheng, professor, Shanghai Art College, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China; executive director, Cultural Cities Research Institute, Chicago, US

‘Surrealism from Paris to Shanghai explores the multifaceted development of Surrealism in modern China. Lauren Walden argues that the integration of Surrealism involves comprehension of surrealist ideology and Chinese artistic principles. Her research sheds light on the significant role Chinese surrealists played in modernising twentieth-century visual culture in China.’

—Sandy Ng, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

‘Walden weaves an articulate, meticulously researched text that inserts modern Chinese artists into the global history of surrealism. Set against the heady political environment of the mid-1930s, the book highlights the prolific urban print culture that was mobilised to spread visually hybrid and eclectic imagery reflecting a “virtual cosmopolis” through the prism of a cultural fusion of the Shanghai-Paris milieu. Its nuanced perspective on internationalism and artistic expression remain highly relevant to today.’

—Katie Hill, Sotheby’s Institute of Art, London