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The Phoenix Years: Art, Resistance and the Making of Modern China
'Amidst all the chatter about China lies this rock of a book, a magnificent memoir/ history from the very core of modern Chinese society and history. It's a wonderful thing where the essential book and the delightful book are, as in this case, the one thing. Let no one speak of China who has not read The Phoenix Years.' Tom Keneally, author of Australians
The Phoenix Years tells the riveting story of China's rise from economic ruin to global giant in the four decades since the country started opening to the world in 1978. This remarkable narrative is informed and illuminated by another one running beneath its surface - the story of the country's emerging artistic avant-garde and the Chinese people's ongoing struggle for freedom of expression.
By following the personal stories of nine contemporary Chinese artists, The Phoenix Years shows how China's rise unleashed creativity, thwarted hopes and sparked tensions between the individual and the state that continue to this day. It relates the amazing years of self-discovery and hope in the 1980s, which ended in the disaster of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Following that tragedy comes the story of China's meteoric economic rise, of the opportunities that emerged and the difficult compromises artists and others have to make to be citizens in modern China.
Journalist and foreign correspondent Madeleine O'Dea has been an eyewitness for over 30 years to the rise of China, the explosion of its contemporary art and cultural scene, and its citizens' long struggle for free expression. Over that time she has known many of the key players, some of whom are now international art stars. Their stories tell the history of their country.
At once a fascinating and accessible account of the birth of modern China and a moving chronicle of decades of courageous political resistance and cultural activism, The Phoenix Years is vital reading for anyone interested in China today.
The Phoenix Years tells the riveting story of China's rise from economic ruin to global giant in the four decades since the country started opening to the world in 1978. This remarkable narrative is informed and illuminated by another one running beneath its surface - the story of the country's emerging artistic avant-garde and the Chinese people's ongoing struggle for freedom of expression.
By following the personal stories of nine contemporary Chinese artists, The Phoenix Years shows how China's rise unleashed creativity, thwarted hopes and sparked tensions between the individual and the state that continue to this day. It relates the amazing years of self-discovery and hope in the 1980s, which ended in the disaster of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Following that tragedy comes the story of China's meteoric economic rise, of the opportunities that emerged and the difficult compromises artists and others have to make to be citizens in modern China.
Journalist and foreign correspondent Madeleine O'Dea has been an eyewitness for over 30 years to the rise of China, the explosion of its contemporary art and cultural scene, and its citizens' long struggle for free expression. Over that time she has known many of the key players, some of whom are now international art stars. Their stories tell the history of their country.
At once a fascinating and accessible account of the birth of modern China and a moving chronicle of decades of courageous political resistance and cultural activism, The Phoenix Years is vital reading for anyone interested in China today.
349 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2016
About the author
Madeleine O'Dea
2 books11 followersMadeleine O’Dea is a writer with a 30-year background in journalism. Her memoir/history of post-Cultural Revolution China, The Phoenix Years, was published by Allen & Unwin, (Sydney, 2016) and by Pegasus Books (New York, 2017, 2018). Her work has also been recently featured in the book The Beijing Bureau, Hardie Grant, 2021, which tells the China story through the eyes of Australia's foreign correspondents.
The Phoenix Years won the Alex Buzo Shortlist Prize at the 2017 Mark and Evette Moran Nib Literary Award, which honours excellence in literary research, and was long-listed for the 2017 Walkley Book Award. It was also chosen by the Grattan Institute for their 2016 Summer Reading List for the Prime Minister.
Tom Keneally called The Phoenix Years "magnificent" saying "it's a wonderful thing where the essential book and the delightful book are, as in this case, the one thing"
Madeleine is currently working on a new book and in association with that project was chosen by the Australia Council to be writer in residence at the Keesing Studio at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris from February to August 2019. In December 2021 she returned to the Cité for six months under their artist program to continue her work on the book.
Madeleine began her professional career as a writer in 1986, when she went to Beijing as the correspondent for the Australian Financial Review newspaper. She subsequently covered China through the 1990s as a producer with ABC Television, while also covering stories from Australia and around the world for the Foreign Correspondent, 4 Corners, 7.30 Report, & Quantum programs.
She was the founding editor-in-chief of Artinfo China and the Asia correspondent for Art + Auction and Modern Painters magazines.
She has written for a range of other publications including the Guardian, The Art Newspaper, Bazaar Art, Orientations, the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, the Toronto Globe and Mail, and The Australian.
The Phoenix Years won the Alex Buzo Shortlist Prize at the 2017 Mark and Evette Moran Nib Literary Award, which honours excellence in literary research, and was long-listed for the 2017 Walkley Book Award. It was also chosen by the Grattan Institute for their 2016 Summer Reading List for the Prime Minister.
Tom Keneally called The Phoenix Years "magnificent" saying "it's a wonderful thing where the essential book and the delightful book are, as in this case, the one thing"
Madeleine is currently working on a new book and in association with that project was chosen by the Australia Council to be writer in residence at the Keesing Studio at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris from February to August 2019. In December 2021 she returned to the Cité for six months under their artist program to continue her work on the book.
Madeleine began her professional career as a writer in 1986, when she went to Beijing as the correspondent for the Australian Financial Review newspaper. She subsequently covered China through the 1990s as a producer with ABC Television, while also covering stories from Australia and around the world for the Foreign Correspondent, 4 Corners, 7.30 Report, & Quantum programs.
She was the founding editor-in-chief of Artinfo China and the Asia correspondent for Art + Auction and Modern Painters magazines.
She has written for a range of other publications including the Guardian, The Art Newspaper, Bazaar Art, Orientations, the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, the Toronto Globe and Mail, and The Australian.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
January 20, 2019
A handful of foreign journalists posted to China in the 1980s and ‘90s have published books reflecting on their experiences covering the country in the lead-up to and aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and June Fourth crackdown. A much larger group of correspondents has written books about China in the early 21st century, focusing on the ever-changing nature of a society on the move. But we have very few books that span the entire 30-year stretch from the mid-1980s to early 2010s. Australian journalist Madeleine O’Dea has filled in that gap with The Phoenix Years: Art, Resistance, and the Making of Modern China, a mix of memoir and history that tells the story of three momentous decades through the lives of several significant artists.
The group of artists O’Dea follows throughout the narrative notably does not include Ai Weiwei, China’s most internationally famous dissident-artist—indeed, Ai is mentioned only twice in the entire book, though he still rates an entry in the “Dramatis Personae” appendix. The artists whom O’Dea follows are not unknown outside China, but their names are likely less familiar than Ai Weiwei’s to the average non-specialist reader (I had heard of a few, but not all).
That non-specialist reader will find an accessible introduction to contemporary China in O’Dea’s fluid narrative. In vivid prose, she explains the dramatic changes that Chinese society underwent in the 1980s; anecdotes from her interactions with Beijing’s underground artist community convey the excitement of those years. There is a heartbreaking tone underneath these bittersweet recollections, as O’Dea foreshadows the decade’s terrible conclusion. I have read many succinct histories of the 1980s in China, and O’Dea’s might be the best.
The latter half of the book, which covers the post-1992 economic boom, the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the intensification of repression under Xi Jinping, is somewhat less engaging, though still written in a clear, accessible manner. The artists who were central actors in the chapters on the 1980s are rather pushed to the sidelines, as O’Dea intersperses brief check-ins with them between her explanations of Chinese politics and society in the 21st century. This change in focus is understandable: before 1989, artistic experiments were an integral part of the changes taking place in post-Mao China. After that year, however, the artists O’Dea follows were flung to the periphery; many of them spent long periods of time abroad, and their work in China reaches only small audiences and is always at risk of being shut down by the authorities. The days of guerrilla exhibits being endorsed by the chair of the Beijing Arts Association are long gone.
The Phoenix Years is touching and well-written, highly recommended for anyone who wants to learn more about art and politics in modern China.
The group of artists O’Dea follows throughout the narrative notably does not include Ai Weiwei, China’s most internationally famous dissident-artist—indeed, Ai is mentioned only twice in the entire book, though he still rates an entry in the “Dramatis Personae” appendix. The artists whom O’Dea follows are not unknown outside China, but their names are likely less familiar than Ai Weiwei’s to the average non-specialist reader (I had heard of a few, but not all).
That non-specialist reader will find an accessible introduction to contemporary China in O’Dea’s fluid narrative. In vivid prose, she explains the dramatic changes that Chinese society underwent in the 1980s; anecdotes from her interactions with Beijing’s underground artist community convey the excitement of those years. There is a heartbreaking tone underneath these bittersweet recollections, as O’Dea foreshadows the decade’s terrible conclusion. I have read many succinct histories of the 1980s in China, and O’Dea’s might be the best.
The latter half of the book, which covers the post-1992 economic boom, the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the intensification of repression under Xi Jinping, is somewhat less engaging, though still written in a clear, accessible manner. The artists who were central actors in the chapters on the 1980s are rather pushed to the sidelines, as O’Dea intersperses brief check-ins with them between her explanations of Chinese politics and society in the 21st century. This change in focus is understandable: before 1989, artistic experiments were an integral part of the changes taking place in post-Mao China. After that year, however, the artists O’Dea follows were flung to the periphery; many of them spent long periods of time abroad, and their work in China reaches only small audiences and is always at risk of being shut down by the authorities. The days of guerrilla exhibits being endorsed by the chair of the Beijing Arts Association are long gone.
The Phoenix Years is touching and well-written, highly recommended for anyone who wants to learn more about art and politics in modern China.
February 8, 2018
Journalist and writer Madeleine O'Dea writes a look at the history of modern China, from the philosophy of their government to the economic conditions to social issues, all for the last several decades, but with a twist: she relates the history through the lens of artists. The book is without a doubt fascinating, and I loved it. If you are interested in contemporary China, or art, or history, this book is for you. Highly recommend!
February 6, 2018
This book was a gripping read for me. The author's journalistic background really helped the characters and situations come to life. I appreciated the approach of looking at this tumultuous period in history from the perspective of an arts movement.
April 30, 2017
An insightful and thoroughly realised recount of this very important time in modern China. 'The Phoenix Years' puts the reader directly in the time and place - engaging one-on-one with pivotal persons that will transform the artistic landscape and the mood of the nation. I learned so much from this book and the narrative is extraordinarily well-written. I recommend this to anyone interested in discovering new voices of art and history on the international scene.
July 13, 2017
Great intro to the past 50 years of China's history through the lens of contemporary art. The economics and politics went a bit over my head but this book movingly conveys the passion, hopes and griefs of the artists.
June 6, 2018
Venía por Ai Weiwei y acabé llevando mucho más.
January 16, 2020
Extremely well written and engaging, with a unique story to tell. Tom Keneally said it best by saying: "Let no one speak of China who has not read The Phoenix Years".
With China's citizens being robbed of their opportunity to generate a holistic and measured opinion on their past, it's important we keep this knowledge alive for a future in which Chinese citizens have freedom of thought and expression that everyone deserves.
With China's citizens being robbed of their opportunity to generate a holistic and measured opinion on their past, it's important we keep this knowledge alive for a future in which Chinese citizens have freedom of thought and expression that everyone deserves.
October 3, 2017
I have long been somewhat interested in contemporary art from China, but found it hard to place the art in a narrative, historical framework. The Phoenix Years is the solution--it relates the artists who arose between 1978 and now in a historical context. The democracy wall and the rise of Deng Xiaoping, the economic liberalization of China and the suppression of the demonstrators at Tiananmen Square (which was attended by several of the artists discussed in this book, including the incredible Sheng Qi and the heroic Guo Jian), and the subsequent clampdown on freedom of expression, particularly under the iron fist of the freedom-hating Xi Jinping. Many of the artists in the book have ended up as exiles for their own good.
January 19, 2022
I have read many books, first hand accounts, about China and traveled there numerous times over a ten year period, 2010 to 2019. I thought I knew a lot about China, but this book sat me down in the classroom as a student of the subject. I learned so much that I had been ignorant of. I kept murmuring to myself, "oh, I never knew that... or I hadn't even considered that...". While the book's focus in on the artists living in and around Beijing it also reached out to others living across the nation. It covers a wide time span from late 1950s to 2016. The topics covered ranged from ordinary daily life to political intrigue. I was delighted to read these artist's stories. Their hopes, ambitions, and their future outlook. The book has a great extended profile description of the people described in the book. The time line in the appendix was well executed. I am grateful I bought this book on a whim. It will reside on my book shelf as a reference source. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who has the faintest interest in China. The stories are well laid out and the author's journalism style infused the book with clarity, documentation, and first hand interviews. Well Done!!
November 21, 2020
An interesting overview of contemporary Chinese art post reform and opening focused on friends of the author's from her years in Beijing as a foreign correspondent. The book presents a light overview of recent Chinese history to put the art in context that may be a nice, soft introduction for those looking to understand contemporary China without wading through a denser, more standard, history book. For those already versed in Chinese history, many parts of the book can be quickly skimmed. The short introductions to key artists and the themes they represented were interesting and would be good to read before going to a related art exhibition. Given the author's personal knowledge of the authors described though, I was left wondering how complete a picture of contemporary Chinese art the book was offering.
April 18, 2023
I almost never write reviews, but I’ve been non-stop raving about this book since the beginning pages so thought I ought to! Madeleine is an exceptional writer, pulling together a history of modern China through the lens of the Art world; there are some pretty remarkable people to meet in this book. Gripped throughout, you’re taken on a journey through the peaks and troughs of the battle for freedom, justice and empowerment of the ‘civilian’ voice. Filled with a fresh appreciation for the art/ philosophy space.
September 2, 2021
actually focused a lot on modern china's history more than i had anticipated and less on art, which is fine and actually what i preferred. for a general audience, the scope made sense, but there were parts in the story where i definitely wanted more context and more analysis, but alas, that isn't this book.
October 15, 2021
This is a brilliant book and I have learned so much about Chinese history since the second World War. The personal touch gives it added charm.
September 17, 2026
Extensive, Riveting, Damning, Beautiful—all words not enough to fully describe this thoroughly enticing, well-researched and truly lived-in book. I discovered The Phoenix Years at a book sale in Kinokuniya back in May of 2025. I was taken aback by its striking cover, an image of Chinese artist Sheng Qi's left hand visibly missing his pinky finger, as a small childhood photograph of himself rests at the centre of his open palm. The title further reeled me in: "Art, Resistance and the Making of Modern China"; a historical account of modern China from the perspective of artists? I was sold.
I started the book three days after getting it and immediately fell in love with the first-hand account writing style of journalist Madeleine O'Dea. Rather than reading as a traditional textbook, O'Dea writes intimately of her experiences across China and her several meetings with Chinese artists. Her writing style is so personable, making every vignette feel so alive. To pack such dense detail of importance in an incredibly engaging and personal manner is really admirable.
As I closed off the book this morning, I voraciously read through Chapter 10: Amnesia and memory. An emotional and ferocious piece detailing China's historical revisionism and forced assimilation of the Uyghur community, the rapidly enforced changes of the country's rural landscapes, and the fundamental role of memory in a society. As artist Zhang Xiaogang puts it in the prior chapter:
Memory is integral to the very being of humanity. We live, learn, and grow from and because of it. Chapter 10 was titled after Zhang's art series of the same name. Here, an excerpt from journalist Yang Jisheng's book Tombstone is quoted:
The Phoenix Years was my first independent experience with annotating. I created a system where each colour represents a specific element, as is common, and due to the scale of information and how dynamic this book is, by the end of it I am left with a massive bright array of colourful index tabs that I can look upon at any time, open up and re-discover a great bit of information or a poignant line.
Having been written in 2016, more than a decade of sweeping changes has once again transformed China, thus there is still so much more to learn about this complex nation. Yet, as a fascinating portrait of more than four decades of political history, artistry, and resistance throughout China, this book is undeniable.
I started the book three days after getting it and immediately fell in love with the first-hand account writing style of journalist Madeleine O'Dea. Rather than reading as a traditional textbook, O'Dea writes intimately of her experiences across China and her several meetings with Chinese artists. Her writing style is so personable, making every vignette feel so alive. To pack such dense detail of importance in an incredibly engaging and personal manner is really admirable.
As I closed off the book this morning, I voraciously read through Chapter 10: Amnesia and memory. An emotional and ferocious piece detailing China's historical revisionism and forced assimilation of the Uyghur community, the rapidly enforced changes of the country's rural landscapes, and the fundamental role of memory in a society. As artist Zhang Xiaogang puts it in the prior chapter:
Because our country is developing by destroying things, we are living in a very contradictory situation. Memory is something basic in our nature—you're born with it—and it is basic to culture, too. It comes to us naturally, but we are living in a situation where memories are constantly being erased. You have to face the changes in your life, but sometimes it is quite cruel to do that, so people get lost and confused.
Memory is integral to the very being of humanity. We live, learn, and grow from and because of it. Chapter 10 was titled after Zhang's art series of the same name. Here, an excerpt from journalist Yang Jisheng's book Tombstone is quoted:
A tombstone is memory made concrete. Human memory is the ladder on which a country and a people advance.
The Phoenix Years was my first independent experience with annotating. I created a system where each colour represents a specific element, as is common, and due to the scale of information and how dynamic this book is, by the end of it I am left with a massive bright array of colourful index tabs that I can look upon at any time, open up and re-discover a great bit of information or a poignant line.
Having been written in 2016, more than a decade of sweeping changes has once again transformed China, thus there is still so much more to learn about this complex nation. Yet, as a fascinating portrait of more than four decades of political history, artistry, and resistance throughout China, this book is undeniable.
November 18, 2025
Author: Madeleine O'Dea
Title: The Phoenix Years
Published: 2016
Genre: non-fiction (Current Affairs & Politics)
Trivia: 2017 Shortlist The Nib Award AU
Trivia: 2017 Longlist The Walkley Book Award AU
#NonFicNov25
Conclusion:
Ms O' Dea's book combines information about Chinese economic transformation and what was happening in private lives. Core message: how closely intertwined process of artistic...and economic awakening were for China. I had difficulty following all the names mentioned until I discovered that at the end of the book is glossary of all artists. The book pivots in chapter 6! The narrative is more personal and we follow Ms O'Dea back to China in 1993. She shares what she feared she would find.
Last thoughts:
This book was amazing. Once I discovered the structure of the narrative it was all smooth reading. Ms O'Dea introduces the artists in chapters 1-5 and we meet them again 20 years later at the end of the book. Buckle up for a wonderful ride...through modern China that you don't find on Wikipedia!
#Bravo
Title: The Phoenix Years
Published: 2016
Genre: non-fiction (Current Affairs & Politics)
Trivia: 2017 Shortlist The Nib Award AU
Trivia: 2017 Longlist The Walkley Book Award AU
#NonFicNov25
Conclusion:
Ms O' Dea's book combines information about Chinese economic transformation and what was happening in private lives. Core message: how closely intertwined process of artistic...and economic awakening were for China. I had difficulty following all the names mentioned until I discovered that at the end of the book is glossary of all artists. The book pivots in chapter 6! The narrative is more personal and we follow Ms O'Dea back to China in 1993. She shares what she feared she would find.
Last thoughts:
This book was amazing. Once I discovered the structure of the narrative it was all smooth reading. Ms O'Dea introduces the artists in chapters 1-5 and we meet them again 20 years later at the end of the book. Buckle up for a wonderful ride...through modern China that you don't find on Wikipedia!
#Bravo
February 11, 2025
For an interdisciplinary Chinese studies nerd, this book is everything I wanted. For a museum nerd, there are is not enough visual material.
Art is interwoven throughout but the image section is far too slim and in some ways unrelated to the text. I don’t need color images, but more would have bumped this to 5 stars.
Art is interwoven throughout but the image section is far too slim and in some ways unrelated to the text. I don’t need color images, but more would have bumped this to 5 stars.
August 3, 2020
3.5
Full of dense information that may be easier to parse out for those already deeply familiar with the subject matter. Somewhat difficult to read, but glad to have read nonetheless.
Full of dense information that may be easier to parse out for those already deeply familiar with the subject matter. Somewhat difficult to read, but glad to have read nonetheless.
August 20, 2021
3.5 stars
February 20, 2023
4.5? Really loved this
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews