Abstract:In October 1980, the o!cial art journal Meishu (Fine arts) published an article titled “On Abstract Beauty” by the artist Wu Guanzhong (1919–2010).1 Referencing the French art terms abstrait (abstract) and non-figuratif (non-figurative), and the paintings of Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944), Wu coined a new term, chouxiangmei (abstract beauty),defining it as purely artistic forms, such as lines, colors, and shapes (Wu1980: 37). Wu emphasized the independence of these artistic forms, indicating his aim to question the long-held doctrine that art should serve political propaganda.
