If asked to convey your thoughts on "family" in an artistic way, what kind of works would you present?

Beijing Times Art Museum invited more than 10 artists to showcase their thoughts on family through different art works in the exhibition of "Dimensions of Family." The exhibit features paintings, photographs, interactive games and art installations under three themed sections.

The "Family of Time" section focuses on how Chinese families have developed from ancient times to today. The "Changes of Families" section explores the changes of clans, houses and society. The "Warmth of Family" section features furniture and household electric appliances dating back to the 1980s.

The exhibition, which is free to the public, will run until February 23, 2020.

Family as miniature of society

Families have been deeply influenced by social and cultural norms. The history of a family, in a great measure, is the history of a society. "The family story of 98-year-old Rao Pingru is almost a miniature of the contemporary history in China," said Zhao Fang, the executive curator of the museum, when introducing the picture/photo exhibition of Pingru and his beloved wife.

This is a lifelong love story that endures as times change in China. When Rao's wife Mao Meitang passed away, he began to paint memories of their lives — together and apart. He looked back and reflected, on love and suffering, on happiness and death. In 2018, his painted book – Our Story – became a hit in countries including Britain, the U.S., France, Spain and South Korea.

China's family planning measure – the "one-child" policy – has left a profound influence on the structure of Chinese families. Introduced in the early 1980s, the policy was aimed at controlling the size of its rapidly growing population. Painter Wang Jinsong took pictures of 200 single-child families between the years 1994 and 1995. In the chromatic photographs, entitled "Standard Family," all the three-member families (mom, dad and kid) were photo-recorded in the same gesture.

"The 'one-child' policy was something we hadn't seen before 1980s and may never see in future as the second-child policy has been released," said Wang, "I'd intended to use paintings to portray the families but later I found the photography was more powerful to present their physical and mental outlook.”

Family as spirit fortress

Family values are something that affects people a lifetime. Biographer Huang Sinie, who is also one of the curators of the exhibition, has been recording intergenerational spiritual inheritance in families for more than four years.

"Family values, which sometimes is simply passed down to the next generation by a story told by the elder, will impact one's choices and even change the destiny of the entire clan. That's something I frequently see in my interviewees," Huang said in an interview with CGTN.

Well-known documentary "Four Springs" is also shown as part of the exhibition. The film presents the daily life of the director Lu Qingyi's family with his own parents as the two main characters. During a promotion event at the museum, Lu said that the film is a gift for his parents and his commemoration of the family.

"It seems we seldom to stop and think about our life but just let it go. If we can record it, no matter in what way, we'll have lots of deliberations of our life," said Mr. Lu.

Family as sweet harbor

The exhibition also features several interactive installations focused on different interpretations of the family unit. 

In the electronic installation "Carnival of Household Items", artist Qiu Yu puts articles for daily use on a revolving rack. These items include chopping board, table lamp and whisk. Through this way, Qiu tries to say that family is not just an abstract concept and the daily necessities bring people lots of happiness in the everyday life.

In another artistic piece "Stable Composition", the main body of the structure is a triangle which means stability. "We all hope to get stability and warmth for our families, and we all try our best to live the physical and mental life we want in our families," said the Li Linlin, the artist behind the work.

(Videos by Chen Shi, Cover image by Du Chenxin)