Performing the self in contemporary rural China: Voice from a villager

This paper provides the voice from a villager who participates in the art-led rural reconstruction in southwest China. In doing so, to highlight the contemporary vernacular creativity contained in the artistic practices of the villager. Existing studies tend to understand villagers as reactive agent in response to the state-led or artist-initiated artistic practices, but fails to capture the initiative of rural people in artistic production. Drawing on the individualization thesis in Chinese society, this paper examines the project Yangdeng Art Cooperative in the rural area of Guizhou Province, China with a special focus on the individual perspective of villager Linghu Changyuan. Findings show how Linghu’s quest for self-identity infiltrates the collaborative practices with artists and gives rise to the autobiographic performance that is characterized by everydayness, improvisation, and relationality. Autobiographic performance of Linghu demonstrates an endogenous approach to artistic production and further shapes the contemporary image of artistic countryside.