JIN SHAN, I'm A Good Man, Don't Arrest Me from I'm

I'm A Good Man, Don't Arrest Me from I'm 27 Years Old, 2006
Color coupler print. 19 3/4 x 27 1/2 in. (50.2 x 69.9 cm). Signed in Chinese, dated, numbered 1/6 in ink, printed title, annotation 'In 1984, our country was waging "Severe Punishment," across the field of the entire state' in Chinese and English in the margin.
Like many contemporary Chinese artists whose work is imbued with the cultural history of their nation, Jin Shan's photographs from the series I am 27 Years Old, address the iconic events of China's past through the veil of the artist's personal history. Superimposing his own image in color atop anonymous black and white photographs, this one depicting the longstanding Chinese tradition of public executions, Jin attempts to open a new dialogue with the past while highlighting the implication of these collective historical events on the individual.