Sino-futurism and alternative imaginaries of Digital China

IF 1.5 3区 文学 Q2 COMMUNICATION Media International Australia Pub Date : 2023-11-15 DOI:10.1177/1329878x231215108
Xinyang Zhao, Michael Keane
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Abstract

This paper investigates the role of digital technologies in transforming China's self-image. It focuses on the use of extended reality (XR) in ceremonial events and art exhibitions. The paper offers two case studies. The first study, Beijing 8-Minute Show (2018), a multimedia performance at the closing ceremony of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games, set the scene for what was called the Science and Technology Winter Olympics in 2022. The second study, Blueprints (2020), was a multimedia exhibition in the UK by the artist Cao Fei, which drew attention to a future of increased alienation, loss of privacy and digital surveillance. In the paper, the framework of a ‘techno-cultural imaginary’ shows how China's self-image is increasingly tied to modernisation. The paper demonstrates how the ‘two cultures’, science and the arts, have converged in policy thinking. In this reset, China's so-called cultural confidence is re-energised by digital platforms, echoing the description of Digital China. Sino-futurism, originally used in relation to Chinese sci-fi literature, provides a stepping-off point to imagine the future, which is alternatively characterised as techno-utopian (within China) and dystopian (in the West). Drawing on the qualitative analysis of publicly available interviews, media reports, online comments and close reading of the art content, the paper argues that XR allows the government to present Digital China as a positive blueprint for human progress. Meanwhile, XR is capable of generating critical stories about China, which contradict the message the government seeks to cultivate with its public diplomacy and propaganda campaigns.
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中国未来主义与数字中国的另类想象
本文探讨了数字技术在改变中国自我形象中的作用。本文重点探讨了扩展现实技术(XR)在礼仪活动和艺术展览中的应用。本文提供了两个案例研究。第一项研究是平昌冬奥会闭幕式上的多媒体表演 "北京八分钟秀"(2018 年),它为 2022 年的科技冬奥会做了铺垫。第二项研究 "蓝图(2020 年)"是艺术家曹斐在英国举办的一场多媒体展览,它让人们关注到异化加剧、隐私丧失和数字监控的未来。在论文中,"技术文化想象 "的框架展示了中国的自我形象是如何日益与现代化联系在一起的。论文展示了科学与艺术这 "两种文化 "如何在政策思维中交汇。在这种重置中,中国所谓的文化自信被数字平台重新激活,这与 "数字中国 "的描述不谋而合。中国未来主义(Sino-futurism)最初与中国科幻文学有关,它提供了一个想象未来的切入点,而未来在中国被描述为技术乌托邦(techno-utopian),在西方则被描述为乌托邦(dystopian)。本文通过对公开访谈、媒体报道、网络评论的定性分析以及对艺术内容的细读,认为 XR 使政府能够将数字中国作为人类进步的积极蓝图来展示。与此同时,XR 也能引发对中国的批判性报道,这与政府试图通过公共外交和宣传活动培养的信息相矛盾。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
CiteScore
7.10
自引率
4.20%
发文量
66
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