The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of December 14, 2025
½ Meat and Text
1998
(Chinese, b. 1965)
Paper: 119.4 x 104.1 cm (47 x 41 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 2012.100.2
© Zhang Huan
Location: Not on view
Description
The 1/2 series was inspired by the market in Beijing where Zhang Huan ate breakfast every morning. “I could see rows and rows of ribs on sale at different stalls. When I saw the ribs, I saw myself. Half of a person is his body and the other half is his soul.” Zhang photographed himself with “meat” (the ribs of an animal carcass) and with meat and “text” (thoughts on poetry and culture written on his body by friends). Humans are animals, Zhang reminds us, but language and art set us apart from our fellow creatures.- Unknown, probably purchased from a gallery; Michael Mattis and Judith Hochberg; Cleveland Museum of Art
- Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 318Tannenbaum, Barbara. "Chinese Photos at the Millennium: A New Generation's Revolt.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 65, no. 2 (2025): 8-9. Reproduced: p. 9; Mentioned: p. 8 archive.org
- Refocusing Photography: China at the Millenium. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 8-November 16, 2025).
- {{cite web|title=½ Meat and Text|url=false|author=Zhang Huan|year=1998|access-date=14 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2012.100.2