Contemporary art by Chinese diaspora in a global age

The art of overseas Chinese with its obvious connections with homeland culture is characteristic of the diaspora ethos. Traditional themes regularly appear: landscapes usually executed in traditional monochrome brush and ink, rock gardens, Chinese characters and calligraphy, historical references, and cultural emblems. In addition, it seems as though such artists are impelled to introduce the world to the merits of their heritage. Living among foreigners and experiencing western culture, new digital media, Internet access, freedom of expression, educational opportunities and global markets has broadened their perspective and their art. For this reason, their work does not look traditional: it makes use of new media, venues and forms of presentation and addresses a global rather than national arena. Although a wave of the most successful diaspora artists returned to China, they maintain a base of operation in the West and their art retains the characteristics they acquired living abroad.