Startling Chinese art at White Rabbit Gallery

Sydney has many museums and galleries, but the White Rabbit Gallery in Chippendale surprised me - almost shocked me - with a provocative collection of contemporary Chinese art. Suffice to say, it is not part of Chinatown.

Walking into the entrance of the four-story building, I was instantly attracted to a ceiling full of birdcages, the kind associated with good-for-nothing Beijingers of yore, and bric-a-brac that screamed folksy Chinese such as cultural revolution-era pots and pans.

Just as I was going to say chinoiserie, I was greeted by a huge wall of paintings with diverse styles and content, none of it discernably Chinese.