Art in Smog is the story of Xia Xiaowan, Su Xinping, and Mushi as their careers and personal visions have developed through China’s rapid growth. It is also the story of individual personalities maturing over time. Beyond these three artists, we meet Xia’s wife Chen Hui, who ponders her situation as a female painter in a male-domnated arena, and Cui Cancan, who exudes the no-holds-barred energy of the younger generation.

Beijing will probably change tremendously in the next 25 years, as well, and toward what? We will want to look back to see how people were navigating, responding, and contributing to China’s transition. The lives and works of artists provide a visually rich, humanistic glimpse of people in a changing world.

The public impact will be to raise questions about the essence of art and to explore the spiritual challenges in a consumerist society, a politically constrained environment, and a globally competitive world. Does East vs. West matter? How do the artists’ lives and works enhance our understanding of tensions in China, and the world, today?