I will be presenting a work that relates to 'observing' method and experience; a work that refers to convictions and awareness. We decided to present this piece to fill The Armory Show with surprise, dynamism, and to make it look 10 years younger.
Lu Pingyuan is a young artist living in Shanghai. He is very special among the young artists from his generation in China. He recently started to create artworks related to 'ghost' stories and contemporary culture, which are excellent. His works are subtle and provide a unique perspective on the co-existence between globalization and one's own culture.
This exhibition was presented in the great hall of UCCA. It included 50 installations, 10 videos, 40 paintings and collages, performances and other works. This exhibition presented Xu Zhen’s early works made in his own name beginning in the late 1990s, works produced under the “contemporary art creation company” MadeIn Company, which he founded in 2009, as well as major new pieces produced specially for this exhibition under MadeIn Company’s newly launched brand, Xu Zhen.
The title, Xu Zhen: A MadeIn Company Production, acknowledges the longstanding relationship between the artist’s individual practice and his sprawling involvement with the Shanghai contemporary art scene. In 2009, Xu Zhen dissolved his art practice into the “contemporary art creation company” MadeIn Company. Acting as the group’s CEO, Xu Zhen continues to undertake creative projects, artworks, and exhibitions under this revised mantle. MadeIn encapsulates Xu Zhen’s unique conflation of art practice, curatorial work, and art promotion that has defined his multifarious career in the Shanghai art scene. The artist’s withdrawal from his own name marks a rejection of the persona-driven contemporary art world while acknowledging that, since he first began working with art in 1997, Xu Zhen’s artwork has always been a collaborative effort.
Contemporary society is composed of countless companies. A company can multiply the energy of an individual. The creation of MadeIn Company was meant to change the world including ourselves – the differences and influences are quite visible.
We consider that exhibitions nowadays are a product, and that art is being sold, so…
Philip Tinari, aside from being a curator, is a Chinese son-in-law, so you can believe his choices.
Chinese contemporary art cannot provide a satisfying answer to the world. Chinese contemporary art nowadays is a farce filled with surprises.