Re-imagining Asia

Book excerpt: Beyond the often-mythologized idea of Asia, the contributors of Re-Imagining Asia investigate artistic heritage, political orientation, and the tensions between tradition and modernity. Through the visual image and the written word, they move toward a definition of Asian values--both aesthetic and intellectual. Lavishly illustrated, with artist biographies and exhibition histories. Shaheen Merali, artist and curator, is head of the Department of Exhibition, Film and New Media at the House of World Cultures in Berlin. He has exhibited internationally in Barcelona, London, New York City (Queens Museum of Art and Bronx Museum of the Arts), Singapore, and Vienna. He is the author of Blackpop (Saqi Books) and the editor of New York States of Mind (Saqi Books).