Art Stories…By Art.Serene: November 2016

Tuesday 29 November 2016

叛逆世代～上海藝術界變天

廖逸君《掛在那裡》2015 Inkjet Print 200 x 150 cm。
Courtesy of Leo Xu Projects.

昔年日本電視劇「前程錦鏽」三位青年人的奮鬥故事，時刻在重演～是次地點由上海開始。2000年在網絡上陌路相逢的三個文藝年青人，傾吓玩吓成了摯友，十六年後今日一位是畫廊掌舵人～許宇，一位是在紐約Brooklyn嶄露頭角身的女藝術家~廖逸君（Pixy Liao），另一位則從巴黎學成歸國，從事表演藝術行政的女強人小張，各自為夢想加油打拼。

許宇的Leo Xu Projects 位於上海徐匯區復興西路一幢民房

Leo Xu Projects展出Nina Canell: Reflexology -藝術家來自瑞典

沒有文革包袱的一代

許宇／Leo Xu 確是上海當代藝圈中需要關注的名字，2011年他創立了— Leo Xu Projects— 一間重視「策展項目」的商業畫廊，獨門秘笈是「慧眼識英雄」，發掘本土及國際的臥虎藏龍，再推廣於不同的市場。兼為藝評人及策展人的許宇，國際視野來自先前於北京前波畫廊 (Chambers Fine Arts)及上海科恩畫廊 (James Cohen Gallery)的經驗累積。今年11月中旬，在上海兩大藝博 - WEST BUND Art & Design 及 ART021，徐宇分別挑選數件Pixy Liao作品放在當眼處，剎是囑目。Pixy大膽描繪兩性關係的攝影及錄像自拍（常故意拿著快門線），可謂脫穎而出，令人眼前一亮。

廖逸君《Man as Bag》2016 展出雕塑及錄像

廖逸君《Massage Time》2015, C-Print
Courtesy of Leo Xu Projects

上海土生土長的Pixy （b.1979) 是父母的獨生女，大學畢業後不甘心做平凡的設計員，遂往美國深造攝影圓夢。她的代表作《Experimental Relationship》（2008至今）猶如生活日誌，以女性視點 (Female Gaze) 將日藉男友Moro塑造成被欺凌者，攝影作品《掛在那裡》（Hang in there) 便是一例，揉合日本動漫與超現實幻想，讓西方藝評人體味亞洲式的「女性主義」趣味，國內人又感受到一股叛逆的清新氣流，顛覆傳統過足癮。

網絡世界靈感泉源

其實，一批於1976年文革結束後出生的新一代，或統稱為「八十後」現已迅速成為上海甚至國內當代藝術的生力軍，他們在意識形態及風格上，均與早前一輩截然不同。「一孩政策」加上在網絡年代，澎湃的外來訊息風湧而來，受注視的獨生兒女，享受個人化的自我追尋，多於對政治及社會的批判；他們也不甘被歸類及定形，更有興趣在互聯網中找塑材及靈感，探索全球化議題；備受西方市場受落的中國元素，如余友涵的毛主席肖像系列、谷文達的水墨書法裝置，也不再是這一代那杯茶。

WEST BUND Art & Design 針對上海市場，前為 aaajiao 作品

再者，這些培育於本土的一代，其成就未必跟曾否放洋留學有關。另一位活躍於上海的「八十後」徐文愷 —又名 aaajiao，網上別號「阿角」— 也是Leo Xu Projects當中讓人另眼相看的新寵兒。無獨有偶，他跟Pixy一樣，都是「轉行」來當藝術家，他在大學本科修讀電腦科學，對網絡應用駕輕就熟，互聯網上的新媒體、新現象和生態，國內的防火牆，虛擬與真實世界，都成了創作靈感。作品《Gfwlist》打印無法解讀的數據，讓觀眾自由取閱，對訊息干擾提出反思。 aaajiao 自2007年由北京工作室移居上海，近年成了國內外炙手可熱的藝術家，好評如潮，皆因觀眾都屬網絡世代。

aaajiao 《Gfwlist》2010, 裝置 76 x 30 x 280 cm

Courtesy of Leo Xu Projects.

「單看作品，你會誤以為他們是國際性的藝術家。」原來作家及策展人Barbara Pollack也跟我有相近的觀察。（If I didn't tell you it is a show of Chinese artists, many of them you would not assume coming from China. Many artists are looking at the issue of Chinese identity and are rebellious against Chinese Stereotypes*）

互聯網改變了世界，更多中國當代藝術家，無需赴笈海外升學，祇要越過防火牆，登記一個VPN帳號來翻牆，也可上 google和facebook，並遨遊紐約MoMA等美術館，易如反掌。時代不能逆轉，亦無法阻擋。

*註：於Asia Society Texas Center 策展"We Chat: A Dialogue in Contemporary Art" (26/3-3/7/2016) 與廖逸君在講座中對話。

Wednesday 16 November 2016

Shanghai's art fair extravaganza: WEST BUND and ART021

Shanghai art fairs Nov 2016 from Serene on Vimeo.

November 2016 has witnessed Shanghai grabbing the spotlight as China's destination for cutting-edge contemporary art experiences.

To coincide with the opening of the acclaimed 11th Shanghai Biennale and an array of art openings were two spectacular contemporary air fairs staged almost simultaneously on the second week of this month. The 3rd edition of the government-backed WEST BUND Art & Design (9-13 November 2016) has attracted over 32,000 visitors during its 5-day run. Primarily an integral part of the so-called Shanghai "Cultural Corridor" initiative, WEST BUND highlighted 31 selected galleries with 22 curated commissions to entice visitors with the marvels of contemporary arts.

In a bigger scale, the fourth ART021 Shanghai Contemporary Art Fair (10-13 November 2016), hosted at the grand Soviet-style Baroque halls of the Shanghai Exhibition Center (SEC), showcased 84 galleries from 18 countries with an unprecedented attendance of over 60,000 visitors. Borrowing expertise from former Art Basel management, ART021 comprised of MAIN GALLERIES, APPROACH, BEYOND public projects, along with "Hooked", Academy Award winner Adrien Brody's premiere show in China.

Gallerists who strived to capitalise on the burgeoning art scene joined both venues concurrently. David Zwirner among the 20 of them, sold works by Oscar Murillo and Neo Rauch on its VIP preview. Edouard Malingue Gallery just launched a new space in West Bund art hub district, showcased works by Eric Baudart and Joao Vasco Paiva in ART021 while displaying Wang Zhibo and Laurent Grasso in West Bund. Kukje Gallery, whose stables include Korean and international artists, sold Kim Whanki's 1957 version of Garden for $4 million RMB at ART021. There are strong indications that Chinese art collectors have quickly acquired a taste for top-notch international artists and are willing to cut a quick deal for artworks of high values.

Meanwhile, the Authority has formulated a long-term plan to turn "Shanghai West Bund" into a culture-led financial hub. In addition to building an 8.4 km Museum Mile comparable to Manhattan, this Huangpu Waterfront also houses the West Bund Art Bonded Warehouses for fine art storage and services. These two annual art fairs would certainly play a vital role in fuelling the robust art market.

WEST BUND Art & Design: Snapshots