至少从９０年代初开始，“先锋”一词在中国艺术界的地位便一落千丈。的确，在一个据说是“后现代的”文化图景之中，“先锋”这个词愈加显示出它的楞头楞脑和它的不合时宜。批评家们刻意回避这个尴尬的字眼，艺术家们宁可把自己的行当称为“实验艺术”或含糊其辞的“当代艺术 At least since the early 1990s, the word “pioneer” has plummeted in the Chinese art scene. Indeed, in a picture of what is said to be a “postmodern” culture, the word “vanguard” increasingly shows its frills and its anachronism. Critics deliberately evaded this embarrassing phrase, and artists prefer to refer to their own profession as “experimental art” or vaguely defined "contemporary art