TOKYO – China has been much in the news recently for its rapid economic growth and also for hosting the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. It is also becoming the subject of worldwide attention for its contemporary art. Artistic expression that departed from socialist realism emerged in the late 1970s, after the country implemented its reform and opening-door policy. In 1979 artists known as the “Star Group” held an exhibition, blazing the trial for much freer forms of expression that put the Chinese artists’ individuality front and center.