China's Addiction to Remembering the Opium Wars

China's fixation on the Opium Wars are the cornerstone on which the foundation of the Communist Party of China's legitimacy rests.  When you go visit the gargantuan National Museum of China on the east edge of Tiananmen Square, the section on modern Chinese history begins with the first Opium War in the 1840's.  So began China's century of humiliation at the hands of foreign imperialist, ending after "liberation" by the communists at the end of the civil war.  At least this is how the story goes in China today.

Of course the two wars between Britain and China did happen, and yes they were fought over British efforts to import opium into China, this fact no one disputes.  China's historians historical narrative differs from the wider world's regarding why the Chinese military and state failed so spectacularly during the wars.  The principal differences between Chinese and non-Chinese historical writings about the war are Chinese historians' efforts to dance around several key issues; bureaucratic mishandling of resources, military discipline, and the loyalty of average Chinese subjects (or average Zhou's if you prefer).

I know it will sound terrible, but I found stories about imperial bumbling of the wars incredibly entertaining at least for the first Opium War.  All the Chinese commanders, including at one point a 15-year old boy, seem so preoccupied with not having their heads chopped off that they falsify dispatches of incredible victories for the emperor, all while while their junks are literally blown out of the water.  Yes even 175 years ago 差不多 accounts of personal accomplishments from Chinese males permeated the Chinese landscape.  Lovell's account of the second Opium War is considerably shorter, darker, and a much more decisive victory for the British and their allies French.

The last third of Lovell's book focuses on how the communists have used the Opium Wars to justify their rule since the party's inception, and how the party's interpretation is a complete facsimile of their adversaries who fled across the Taiwan Strait.  Note: Chairman Mao once served as the director of the Nationalist's propaganda department before a political purge.  Under successive dictatorships China's role in history went from China being its own worst enemy, to a backward nation colonized by all of the imperialist powers simultaneously.

The reason for this transition is simple.  The former meant focusing on systemic problems within Chinese society and how they exacerbated problems during the wars, turning them into debacles.  The latter just meant focusing on the idea of China as a backward country that needed a ruling force with a firm hand to guide it along the path to "development".  发展至上.  As a foreigner looking at China through my personal lens, the myth of the latter truly reigns supreme in government propaganda about the war.  

This month I finished both Lovell's impressive book The Opium War and Preston's less impressive The Boxer Rebellion.  Be on the lookout for a future post about Beijing's prominent role in the rebellion.               

The Rogue State's Gallery

It's a little known fact that the North Korean government runs an art gallery in Beijing's swanky 798 arts district.  It's become something of an urban legend, and the gallery is tucked away in a corner of the compound making it hard for the casual visitor to find.

A four mop salute

Outside the gallery stands a replica of a large statue from North Korea.  You can see it pictured here with a salute of mops standing against it.  My guess is that the Dear Leader might be a neat freak.  As I mentioned before, this place isn't easy to find.  I found it completely by chance while wondering around the 798.  I didn't even know it existed before I went.

The expiation on the side of the building about what it is

Though the gallery doesn't allow pictures, I managed to snap a few before the workers told me in English to stop.  I also observed that the gallery employees spoke to each other entirely in Chinese.

One of the pictures from inside the gallery features a whole wall of paintings including people on horseback and a female factory worker.  Another picture shows a painting of the North Korean Soccer team celebrating.  The art is eerily similar to the art you will find in the "modern" section of the National Museum of China, but unlike the NMoC, this North Korean gallery featured some art with contemporary subjects (after 1980).  This fact only highlighted for me the interesting corner the Chinese government has drawn itself into in recent decades.

A sampling of North Korean art

Turning its back on Marxist-Maoist ideology while still trying to justify the party's existence has made the topic of contemporary life taboo.  You see this in everything from television and movies to books.  It seems like the majority of television shows on CCTV are either about fighting the Nationalist or Japanese, dramas about the imperial court, or food.  It's for this reason that foreign entertainment has become so big in China, and why its popularity continues to grow at breakneck speed.  North Korea doesn't have shy away from the modern world.  Like China it controls the media, but it doesn't have to worry as much about information slipping in from the outside world.

The fact I saw a painting glorifying a soccer victory in Socialist-Realist style didn't come as a shock to me.  What shocked me was that I haven't seen it in China, because almost nothing in China after 1949 is ever discussed in art.  As discussed in my last post, almost none of the art in the 798 comes off as anything close to unique.  In a way the North Korean gallery highlighted what government-approved art looks like before the grip of the state loosens like it has in today's China.

The gallery sold souvenirs like North Korean postage stamps.  I didn't buy any because I made a conscience decision not to indirectly support the regime in the DPRK.  As my time in Beijing comes to a close I am beginning to wonder if I have somehow passively lent support to the CPC by living here.  The truth is that I probably have in a way, and frankly I feel guilty for this in a way.

Things like this only help me appreciate that I am an American.        

Did North Korea win World Cup '14 and no one tell me about it?

Note: A new movie about an elderly woman dealing with her experiences during the Cultural Revolution was released last week.  I am holding my breath hoping it doesn't get pulled before I can see it.  

798

Alfresco dinning

Beijing's 798 Arts District is notable for being in a former East German constructed factory complex.  The area continues to gain popularity as a tourist destination, particularly for domestic tourists from other parts of China and foreigners looking for a more laid back alternative to Gulou.  I'll be blunt about it.  If you only have a week in Beijing this place is a skip, but I have lived here two years and I am running out of things on my Beijing Bucket List at an alarming rate.  The focus at the 798 is less on the art and more "looking cool for the outside world", but even this gives a great opportunity to enjoy and examine the "face" Asia's favorite one party dictatorship puts on for the rest of the world.


Businesses in the complex range from surprisingly good restaurants to expensive art gallaries without much in between.  Either way, don't forget your wallet because you'll need to leave it at the 798 when you go home.

Steampunk before steampunk was steampunk

There's a lot of hype surrounding this place.  Some people even go as far as to call it Beijing's Soho, though I'd certainly call this an overestimation.  It took me nearly two years to get the motivation to visit the place.  Most casual visitors to the capital skip it because of its distance from other attractions.  No one will ever accuse it of being easy to get to the 798 because there isn't a decently close subway station.  In fact 7.98 hours is roughly the time it will take you to travel to this place from central Beijing if you take public transport.

Hello! Anyone Home?

Most of the galleries are on the high end of the price spectrem.  I also though the galleries themselves are few and far between in this massive compound.  That's sort of the problem with having such a big, sprawling space, if you don't have enough things to fill it up it just looks empty.  Many of the buildings I peaked into were completely empty.  However the 798 has an abundance of cafes, bars, restuarants and stores selling knick-knacks.

A few stores in the 798 specialize in selling cheaply made pieces of Americana.  These stores carry the same things that your local Cracker Barrel sells in the gift shop.  This might seem odd if you visit China for a short time.  I have come to expect this kinds of things here in the Middle Kingdom.  When I asked the woman working if the items were made "here" she told me yes.  Maybe she just meant made in China.

After two years I have begun to find China's embrace of everything culturally "non-Chinese" as troubling to say the least.  Especially as the Chinese government's pension for nationalism abroad surges unchecked.  As a result this post might come off as condescending.  Though most foreign news sources actually do a wonderful job of covering China (though the Chinese government would certainly say the opposite), I increasingly feel the need to highlight cultural things overlooked in favor of politics and economics.  

American culture and American art permeates the 798 for several reasons.  For one, its simply too controversial in China to prop the wing of a PLA Air Force plane in a public place.  Is it anti-military?  Is it anti-CPC?  There's simply too much ambiguity and symbolism.  Two, everyone knows its easier to steal than create.  And finally there frankly isn't a lot of contemporary culture unique to China.  It's a dark thing to say and probably a controversial statement, but after two years in Beijing and trips around China and to several of the China's neighbors, I frankly just have to admit this fact publicly.

Wing and a Prayer

The scars of the Cultural Revolution and Maoism unsurprisingly run deep.  Yes these catastrophic and important events might one day seep their way back into Chinese Culture and discourse, either when China begins to come to terms with its past or accept the things about the present it refuses to change.  Until this happens you'll still find commemorative license plates from the film Pearl Harbor that people try selling to you as "unique" works of Chinese art.  Either way the image of some party official's wife hanging a fake license plate with Ben Affleck's face on it and calling it art is simply too funny not to laugh about.        

Be on the look out for my next blog post about the 798's mysterious North Korean gallery.    

The Chinese love Michael Bay films in a way laowai
cannot understand

Rusty factory equipment permeates the Chinese countryside

Vague Sculpture

My friend Kofi and a tiger statue

Street with exposed piping.  That's how you know it's hip

Chinese Reads: Tai Pan

I am currently experiencing a Chinese phase of my life.  I live in China, I am learning Chinese (though unsuccessfully), and most of the books I read are about the Middle Kingdom.  Just last month I finished James Clavell's TaiPan, a story about a British trading firm during and after the first Opium War.  Unlike Clavell's other notable work, Shogun, I finished TaiPan and thoroughly enjoyed it.  Loyal readers may remember the blog post about me abandoning Shogun 800 pages into the book.  Despite Clavell writing TaiPan in the 60's, it reads like an allegory for today's China with its wonderful descriptions of cohongs and corruption.  The cohongs operated as middlemen between traders from Europe and America and the Chinese mainland.  All of the opium smugglers needed to partner with a cohong for the importation of opium to the Chinese mainland and the exportation of teas and silks.  Any sane person might ask I thought opium was illegal and the Europeans just forced it on the Chinese?  Yes opium was illegal, but the cohongs still oversaw the importation of the drug and made large sums of money from the practice.

The book highlighted two things in China that haven't changed in nearly 200 years.  Foreign enterprises still need to partner with Chinese middlemen when operating in the mainland.  The words the book using to describe this practice is "the squeeze".  Even back in the time of the emperors, China still placed lining the pockets of government ministers uber alles.  Today companies in certain industries, particularly anything relating to heavy manufacturing, must form a joint venture with a Chinese company, usually one of the state owned enterprises (SOE).  In industries that don't require many fixed costs or expertise, such as tech companies, foreign companies sometimes get locked out of China entirely.  Clavell's book shows this has been happening in China since before the "revolution".  

Not much different from
the cover of Shogun

The other harsh fact the book highlights is the absence of the rule of law.  China watchers might remember a few months back when every newspaper carried stories about President Xi's drive to foster the rule of law in China.  Then they realized this would be a bad thing of the party and the phrase "rule of law" disappeared about three weeks later.  Clavell uses the importation of opium to China to show us that the absence of the rule of law runs throughout Chinese history.  The Imperial Government made the importation of opium illegal and placed the Mandarins (government officials) in charge of enforcing the law.  Instead the Mandarins find a way to profit from importing the drug, regardless of the edicts from the emperor.

Though written decades ago, Clavell's novel reads like a tale of modern Chinese government and Chinese business practices.  He also does a wonderful job of showing why the tiny island of Hong Kong became so important for the Chinese people who went there for a better life.  As a teacher, I found the part about the cohong leader's efforts to have his son educated abroad particularly poignant.  Despite its nearly 800 page length, this book went by way to fast.  I recommend it for historical fiction buffs and anyone with an interest in China.     

Chinese Progaganda and Advertising

Communist China is famous for its propaganda. Despite efforts to keep many messages from the party a "domestic matter", it's always worth it to find out what these posters say. Some feature unintentionally funny messages and almost all boost poorly photoshopped images, a staple of Chinese propaganda since Windows 95. Images of the propaganda currently displayed in Beijing's public places is usually hard to come by on the internet, so I decided to take it upon myself to enlighten the world and dispel those nasty rumors spread by western media. Visitors usually don't break out the selfie stick for something they can't read, so I did it for you. Also western media outlets don't want to be locked out of the valuable Chinese market for pointing out some propagandist's efforts at passing off a poorly rendered, photoshopped version of Chicago as a model Chinese city. Enjoy these bits and pieces of the party's collective hive mind. Note: I once saw a propaganda poster with the White House on it in Tangshan, Hebei, but I was unable to snap a photo of it. I'll keep my eyes peeled.






This poster has appeared all over Beijing in the last few months. The writing says, "Promote ideological and moral construction for the children, create a healthy environment for the growth of children." The poster features many common themes in Chinese government propaganda including children laughing, greenery, and skyscrapers (both foreign and domestic).





This one says, "Maintain long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong and Macau， Work together to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations." Messages like this began appearing during the Hong Kong democracy protests last year. The reason this poster made it on this blog is because the photo is of mid-town Manhattan and not Hong Kong or Macau. If you look closely you can see the Chrysler Building and the Bank of America Tower.





Though I don't know for certain, I think this piece of propaganda from the Beijing Subway might be left over from the Beijing Olympics. Though this photo doesn't show it, the poster is extremely faded. It says, "Civilization forging industry brand，construct humanistic subway." No one said that these posters would translate well.






The ubiquitous, "Chinese Dream, Subway Dream," poster can be seen everywhere in Beijing. No one quite knows exactly what the Chinese Dream is, but I imagine its best dreamt during your 1:30 post lunch nap.






Sometimes the television screens in the Beijing Subway manfunction, and when this happens they display images from Windows XP. Not exactly propaganda, but it seems the Beijing Subway should ask the Microsoft paperclip for help.






I wasn't able to get this one translated, but it features the Sihui Bus Station. I couldn't resist the opportunity to take a picture of propaganda featuring a building while I was inside of the building.





Loyal readers of this blog might notice these buildings from "The Beijing Mysteries" series.
This poster is from the Sihui bus station in Beijing. Originally meant to be completed before the Beijing Olympics, the 40 story towers from the building in the posters stand topped out in central Beijing but have remained in development hell since 2008.
"Beijing spiritual practice , creating a hub success" The hub is a reference to the Dongzhimen
transport hub underneath the complex.







This poster from a bus stop is notable for its inclusion of the Seoul Tower from Seoul South Korea.
The poster says"Everywhere be safe"





This poster is from the backside of China Unicom's world headquarters on Chang'An. China Unicom is one of the "Big 3" Chinese state owned telecom companies. It features a poorly produced collage of buildings from around the world. "The leading digital media in Beijing"




This poster demonstrates the downside of using stock photos from the internet. Notice the World Trade Centers in the collage.




This one also features a much larger picture of New York city. The messages were placed next to two images, one of Macau and one of mid-town Manhattan. I assume they thought no one would notice, especially considering the poster of New York is in the middle of the display. The writing says, "Celebrate the 65th anniversary of the establishment of People's Republic of China"





The poster with this egg woman says "Chinese Dream MyDream" This poster is just one of many in a series featuring the "Chinese Dream" motif and porcelain figures.


The last propaganda poster of the post features the phrase, "Warm all the way , all the way clean, safe journey home." I don't know what it means either, but enjoy the photo of the countryside.

CBA Shuffle: China's Professional Basketball League

The Xinjiang (far left) has some serious
traveling to away games

This week marked the beginning of the CBA finals between the Beijing Ducks and the Liaoning Flying Leopards.  Who knew leopards could fly, right?  The Chinese Basketball Association has gained a lot of traction on the relatively small Chinese sports circuit, particularly in Beijing.  The Chinese love a winner and the success for the capital's team over the past two seasons, they were champions last season, has done a great deal for a domestic league which is usually overshadowed by the much flasher NBA in America.  I've compiled just a few of the many reasons for groundswell of interest in the CBA.  Enjoy!

Suck it Liaoning.  Go Ducks

1.  NBA Star Power Doesn't Necessarily Equal Dominance - When it comes to sports, the Chinese love winners.  I've said it before and I'll say it again.  If you need evidence just look to the massive amount of Miami Heat gear thrown away in this country after Lebron left for Cleveland (Lebron 回来Cleveland).  Without a dominant team with a arrogant, charismatic player leading the league this season, the CBA has experienced heightened visibility this year.  With a more competitive field of teams this year relative to each other than the NBA, the race to the CBA finals remained a barnburner all season long.  It's refreshing to see a homegrown Chinese institution expand its base without the help of government protectionism.  

Marbury with a Chinese translation of his name

2.  Ex-NBA Players Adding an International Feel - Ex-NBA players keep creeping their way on to the rosters of CBA teams.  In a that guy is still around moment, Stephon Marbury is the current star player for the Ducks.  He was named one of Beijing's 10 Model Citizens this year, becoming the first foreigner to win (or be singled out for) the award.  He's even becoming something of a propaganda tool, staring in a musical about his own life.  That's right, sings and dances and everything.  Checkout the link below.  Foreigner players help bolster a domestic talent pool that honestly isn't very strong and give name recognition for foreigners with a passing interest in the league, such as myself.

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/5-amazing-moments-from-stephon-marburys-chinese-musical-20141002

3.  National "Face" and Soccer Prowess - Ask most 18-49 males their favorite soccer team and 9 times out of 10 they will tell you some super successful European team.  Often the question is quickly followed by the statement that Chinese soccer teams aren't good enough.  China (people and government) simply hate the fact Chinese soccer hasn't developed into a global powerhouse.  The President of China recently announced a massive initiative aimed at improving the soccer fortune of the nation.  This attitude of course affects support for the domestic league.  For a number of reasons basketball is less affected by the lust for "face" on the national stage.  The CBA might not have the talent of the NBA or European soccer, but your average Zhou seems to care less about this fact in relation to basketball than soccer, and this has helped the league greatly over the period I have lived here.  

Some CBA Cheerleaders

Reason for My Person CBA Interest

The Pacers Terrible Season - The NBA has predictability and competitive parity problems.  There I said it.  It's basically been a foregone conclusion who'd win the conference championships during the last few years, and this has made me tune out as soon as the Pacers are out of the running.  Granted the league has been a lot more interesting this season than in years past, some teams still lord over the competition.  I stopped paying attention when I realized the Pacers season was over 5 minutes after it started.  The CBA gives me an opportunity to get my professional basketball fix without having to bandwagon onto some NBA during the playoffs, or support the NCAA.      

Little Known Beijing Museums: Planes, Trains, and Tanks

Security is tightening as the city prepares for the upcoming party conference.  If stiff technocrats don't interest you, make sure to check out these photos from two of Beijing's lessor known museums. I spent the last two weeks checking out some of Beijing's lesser known tourist attractions, maximizing my free time before my Chinese classes start again.  First up are some photos from the Beijing Railway Museum at the southeastern corner of Tiananmen Square.  The museum is in an old train station and features some cool exhibits.       

Railway Museum ironically framed with buses in the foreground

Chinese propaganda saying, "Keep Hong Kong and Macau developing prosperously."  The
picture is actually of midtown Manhattan.  If you look closely you'll see
the Bank of America and Chrysler Buildings.  Close enough for government work I guess.

Entryway

A shoutout to Tangshan on a museum plaque

Museum artium 

Some awesome Chinglish 

Some of the exhibits were down for repairs

Warning: This flatscreen is dangerous

One of the clock faces from a clocktower at Beijing Railway station.  

All graphs surprisingly display 1949 as a pivotal year for everything

Sorry about the blurriness

Nancy Pelosi unwittingly becomes a propaganda tool

A model of a railroad bridge in Nanjing resembling the Sherman Minton Bridge

Outside the museum looking at Tiananmen Square.  Mao's Mausoleum (right) and the Qianmen Gate (left)

 While wondering around Houhai Lake one afternoon, Tang Qi and I stumbled onto a new coffee shop.  Trendy hipster joints have been multiplying like rabbits in the capital.  This one has a unique angle.  Everything in the coffee shop is for sale, and I mean everything, giving caffeine addicts the ability to get their fix and purchase some overpriced nicknacks.

Inside of a new, local coffee shop.  

Coffee from the Dark Side

Didn't realize there was a demand for this shit.

Go for the Doughboy.  I had one of these a child.  Good times

Bikes and a massive clock for sale

If you need a bust of the predator, I know where to go

First rule of life; always go into the shady basement

The sign and name of the place....I guess

The coffee shop's Dragon Alley like entrance.

A lone protest outside a central Beijing government office.

Tang Qi enjoying Indian food.  It's cool to play with your food here.

A beautiful view of Tangshan from Tang Qi's family's apartment.

 Beijing enjoyed one of its few, fabled blue sky days Wednesday.  In an effort to maximize my time breathing moderately clean air, I visited the Military Museum.  Indoor exhibits are still closed as part of a never ending renovation, but the outdoor stuff is open for business.  Notice that all of the exhibits and pieces are covered in a thick layer of dust.  Though I don't know why the museum staff doesn't clean the exhibits, it helped to remind me about the hazard Beijing's air poses to my lungs.

The Military Museum sports a gothic revivalist style like many important Soviet buildings.

An M4 tank.  Notice the dust.

You can't tell from the photo, but I am reenacting "Tank Man".

A U-2 from the Republic of China Air Force. The plane not the band

Taiwan markings

More propaganda.  Photoshop truly makes artists of us all.

They even have fake Humvees.