For a variety of reasons, the image of China has been undergoing significant changes and a project led by Dr Anne Witchard from Westminster University aims to investigate the changing conceptions of China and Chineseness in Britain.
his one-day event related to the project brought together academics and artists to discuss the representation of the Chinese community in Britain in the areas of performance, theatre and music.
Although there has been exciting engagement between Britain and China for centuries, the British depiction of the ‘Chinese’ in popular culture is coloured by its imperial and post colonial relationship with China, and the need to ‘exoticise’ the East in some way.
Dongshin Chang, Assistant Professor, at City University, New York, provided the historical context in which missionaries who went to China were surprised to discover how ‘civilised’ the country was. However, it did not stop them showing the Chinese in popular imagery of the day as people with tall hats and thin moustaches; though ironically they may have been sketching the Tartar community.
In the 18th century, “Chinoiserie”, the practice of importing Chinese goods into Europe inspired by decorative arts, became fashionable, but, it was driven by strong commercial interests in China. It was here that representations of China and Chineseness (still prevalent today) began to be fashioned. Voltaire translated a highly popular play, The Orphan of China, into French, while the London stage put on shows with British actors playing Chinese characters. There are many other (re) presentations including the depiction of China and Chinessness in pantomimes, such as Aladdin. These issues are explored more fully in her forthcoming book Entangled Identities: Britain and China and the Politics of Performing Chineseness in Britain, 1930-1950 by Dr. Diana Yeh.
This tussle to give voice to your cultural heritage is an on-going one, and actors, Lucy Sheen, David Yip and David Lee-Jones, shared their personal experiences as artists working in modern Britain. DJ and broadcaster, Zoe Baxter, outlined her interest in contemporary Chinese culture, whilst, performer, poet, blogger and broadcaster, Anna Chen, http://www.madammiaow.blogspot.com/ entertained the audience with her witty observations of being a dual heritage “British Chinese Daganese East End” girl who gets sick of lazy stereotyping of the Chinese community and is never afraid to speak her mind in an incisive manner.
Read more about the project on http://www.madammiaow.blogspot.com/
by Suman Bhuchar
