Wu Hung, Chinese born, has become a well-known U.S. art historian. Author of a number of distinguished books discussing the art of his native country, in Remaking Beijing he tells the history of Tiananmen Square, the gate to the Imperial Palace. Every tourist who goes to Beijing visits this central site. Coming from the east, you go north to buy a ticket and enter the Forbidden City. But if you walk south just before entering the Square, you reach the Museum of Chinese History, which now contains displays of art and a waxworks exhibition showing the communist rulers, various emperors, and three non-Chinese figures—Marx, Engels, and Lenin. Alternatively, going straight across the heavily trafficked Square, you can view the tomb of Chairman Mao. In any event, you see the gigantic portrait of Mao above the entrance to the Forbidden City. When I first saw it, I thought of Andy Warhol’s large Mao. But there is nothing ironical about the picture in Tiananmen Square. This entire area is heavily policed, as the Chinese authorities are very worried about political demonstrations. Some recent protestors have immolated themselves, and so uniformed observers stand on platforms above fire extinguishers. In straightforward prose without superfluous...