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| Asia Art Forum is proud to announce a dynamic series of lectures, featuring respected members of the Chinese contemporary art world discussing the emergence and historical development of Chinese contemporary art and its cultural institutions, as well as issues pertaining to the collection and market of Chinese art. For the first time, this dynamic and fast changing period of Chinese art history will be unpicked and laid out, enabling a steady assessment and understanding of these extraordinary developments. Taking 1978 as its starting point the course will move forward chronologically focusing on key movements, specific groups and significant exhibitions that form the backbone of this startling rise in Chinese contemporary art. To date, Beijing has always been the focus of any study of contemporary Chinese art history, this course will redress the balance, shifting the focus to include the significant role played by Shanghai's artists and art scene. Fostering direct encounters with leading members of the Chinese contemporary art world, the program offers a privileged access to first-hand information on subjects relating to the Chinese contemporary art history and the collection of art. The forum encourages the exchange of ideas by means of guest lectures and personal contact with the lecturers and other guests, and will provide a unique opportunity to art professionals, collectors and enthusiasts to study the history of Chinese contemporary art. Each two-hour seminar will take place in varying locations across Shanghai, either leading galleries or museums and will be presented by some of the most prominent experts in the field. Asia Art Forum is an educational initiative in collaboration with Arthub, produced by Pippa Dennis, with consultation from Davide Quadrio and Defne Ayas. 15% of all profits will go to Arthub, a non-profit art and cultural organization which promotes contemporary art creation in China and the rest of Asia. |
Huang Yan, 2007 Images courtesy of the artists |
Lu Chunsheng, 2005 Images courtesy of the artists |
Liu Jianhua, 2000 Images courtesy of the artists |
Programme to include:
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| Speakers to include: |
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Philip Tinari is a writer and curator based in Beijing. He is Contributing Editor of Artforum, and founding editor of artforum, the magazine's Chinese-language website. His writings have appeared in publications including The New York Times Magazine, Parkett, The Wall Street Journal Newspaper, and the Chinese journal Dushu, as well as exhibition catalogues for museums including the Guggenheim and the Serpentine Gallery. He is China Advisor to Art Basel. In 2007, he founded Office for Discourse Engineering, an editorial studio focused on publishing and translation related to Chinese contemporary art. |
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Karen Smith has been in Beijing since 1992 researching Chinese contemporary art. She is the author of Nine Lives: The Birth of Avant-Garde Art in New China and the forthcoming monogrpah on Ai Weiwei. Her curatorial work includes The Real Thing at Tate Liverpool, 2007; The Chinese, Kunstmuseum Wolfsberg, Germany, 2004; and Illumination; Ai Weiwei and Tibetan Plateau, Beijing Girls: Liu Xiaodong both at Mary Boone Gallery, 2008. |
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Jeremy Wingfield is a Contemporary Art Specialist for Phillips de Pury & Co. He lives and works in Beijing. From 2002 to 2006 he directed the CourtYard Gallery in Beijing. Before coming to Phillips, Jeremy operated in Beijing as a private dealer and collaborated with Chinese artists on special projects while helping collectors outside of China to sell to Chinese buyers. Mr. Wingfield has a bachelor’s degree in Art History from Reed College and speaks Chinese fluently. |
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Davide Quadrio, co-founder of BizArt, China's first not for profit art centre, and creator of Arthub, apan Asian arts organisation that supports mobility, research and process based artistic work in Asia and the Middle East. He is based in Bangkok and Shanghai and works as art director, curator and educator committed to supporting artistic endeavours crossing the boundaries between east and west. |
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Defne Ayas is based in Shanghai since 2005, and working as curatorial consultant to Arthub, serving China and the rest of Asia, and as an art history instructor at New York University in Shanghai. Ayas is also curator of PERFORMA, the biennale of visual art performance with base in New York City, where she spends part of the year. Prior to joining PERFORMA, where she has been developing and presenting performances since its inception in 2004, Ayas worked as the Education and New Media Programmer at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York. |
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Zhao Chuan is a writer, theatre director and critic. He writes arts columns and regularly publishes inmajor newspapers and the art press in mainland China and Taiwan. He's the guest lecturer in the ChinaArt Academy and New York University's Shanghai Center. His book Shanghai Abstract Story was published in 2006. |
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Michelle Blumenthal is an art specialist based in Hong Kong and Shanghai. She originally trained in Chinese traditional porcelain, ceramic, textiles and furniture, later moving into Chinese contemporary art as a curator and art consultant. Her specific area of expertise focuses on the development of Chinese abstract art from the late 1970's. |
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