Cynical Realism

A style of art practiced in Beijing in the late 1980s and early 1990s by such figures as Yue Minjun, Fang Lijun, and Liu Wei, who sought to evoke the psychological implications of China's rapid development, urbanization, and opening to the West. Although lacking a unifying aesthetic, Cynical Realist works share an ironic, humorous, and satirical tone.