RAS Art Focus

Mapping Shanghai Through Public Sculptures

Sunday, April 12, 2026

2:45 am Registration

3:00 pm to 5:00 pm

In your strolls and bike rides through the streets of Shanghai, have you encountered statues on streets and wondered about the meanings they hold? Chances are, you have passed along the city's busiest thoroughfares, unknowingly overlooking some of the most iconic public sculptures that were conceived and designed by renowned artists.

In February 2014, RAS Art Focus Convener Julie Chun delivered an accessible art history lecture entitled "Understanding Public Sculptures in Shanghai and Beyond" to members and friends of the Royal Asiatic Society China. Although 12 years have passed, during which time the city of Shanghai has witnessed unprecedented demolitions and reconstructions, remarkably, many of the sculptures she discussed remain in-situ and intact.

With a retrospective gaze at recent history, Julie Chun revisits her 2014 lecture with updated information and renewed insight. This talk will first provide a context for understanding the genre of sculpture in China, before mapping the streets of Shanghai through public sculptures you may have paused and observed, even wondered about, or perhaps missed entirely. This Art Focus session aims to expand the scope of Chinese contemporary art history, sharpen our visual acumen, and foster a greater engagement with the urban environment to deepen our appreciation of the many sculptures that constitute Shanghai as an open-air museum.

In keeping with the "retro" theme, we will be meeting at the Tavern of the Xingguo Radisson Collection Hotel, a venue where many past memorable RAS China talks and screenings formerly took place from 2012-2019.