press release

This work by New York-based artist Patty Chang examines the idea of Shangri-La, the mythical hamlet of James Hilton’s 1933 novel “Lost Horizon” which has come to represent a romanticized, exotic paradise in the English-speaking world. Chang’s video installation will document and explore her journey to an imaginary place– and to a town recently named Shangri-La by the Chinese government to exploit its touristic potential. This is the third work in a series of projects jointly developed by and presented at the MCA, the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, and the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, with the purpose of stimulating the creation of new work by artists not yet well known in the United States. The MCA presentation is coordinated by Assistant Curator Julie Rodrigues Widholm.

Patty Chang: Shangri-La is part of The Three M Project, a series by the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; and New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York to commission, organize and co-present new works of art. Generous support for the series has been provided by the Peter Norton Family Foundation and the American Center Foundation. Patty Chang: Shangri-La also received support from Altria Group, Inc. Patty Chang received a Media Arts Fellowship, supported by the Rockefeller Foundation, for this project. Air transportation is provided by American Airlines, the official airline of the Museum of Contemporary Art.

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Patty Chang: Shangri-La