WORK / LIVE 干活 NYU Shanghai

A factory might seem an unlikely place to make art, yet nine NYU Shanghai students led a printmaking activity there, as part of a trip on collaborative art practices designed by Associate Arts Professor of Visual Arts Monika Lin with Susan Dai of the Community-Engaged Learning Office.

The activity, “Community Narratives”, used everyday objects as symbols of memory, place and identity. Coming from China, the US and Guatemala, and speaking Mandarin with varying fluency, the students learned about the workers’ lives through the objects they had brought, then guided them through each step of printmaking while experimenting with their own work.

“I’m used to being around Chinese and not understanding, but now I’m actively trying to speak and understand,” said Amelie Woc ’28. “It inspired me to learn more.”

The day was organized with the Social Sensibility R&D Department, founded by Italian artist Alessandro Rolandi and coordinated by Chinese artist Zhao Tianji: in 15 years it has brought more than 40 artists into the factory, and several workers have shown their work in Beijing and abroad. Monika Lin had already led a first workshop at the factory with NYU Shanghai students in 2024.

Full article: Making Art on the Factory Floor: CEL Trip to Beijing, NYU Shanghai.