China International Gallery Exposition (CIGE), Beijing
Beatrice Leanza
Giang Sho, Fashionable Peasants, The Eight Brothers, The Third Brother Wang Fumin and The Fifth Brother Wang Focai, 2002. Fiberglass and other materials 170 x 70 x 60 cm
Spring 2005 is full of promises for the Beijing artistic stage. The lyrical season will be true to its epithet, nurturing the development of literature and arts in Beijing. May "a hundred flowers blossom and all school of thoughts contend," when the Dashanzi art district of the city will host galleries, start-up events, a festival centered on performing arts (DIAF), and, on May 2, the opening of the second edition of the China International Art Exposition (CIGE), held at the China World Trade Center until May 5.
Peruse the list of participating galleries and you will notice an increased number of foreign names: in addition to those already expected and featured in European art fairs under the section China (CourtYard Gallery, Beijing; White Space- Bejing of the German Alexander Ochs; Chinese Contemporary, London/Beijing; Shanghart, Shanghai; BTAP/Tokyo Gallery, Beijing-Tokyo), several renowned European and American galleries are soon to embark on the "mainland" expedition. Galleria Continua and Marella Arte Contemporanea from Italy, both opening their new spaces in the captivating Danshanzi district, will be present along with Americans Gagosian and Jack Tilton, German Christian Nagel and an increased number of Korean, Japanese and Taiwanese spaces to round out the total of more than 90 booths. Selection was made by an artistic committee of six people, all locally involved in the appreciation and introduction of contemporary arts in Beijing.
Certainly encouraging for the affordable admission fee (the largest areas go for 2,000 dollars on a total surface of 8,000 m exhibition hall), this year CIGE appeals to "standardization and fore-heading to the future." Managing director Yao Wei, from the business department of the Beijing Chinese Art Exposition & Media Co., Ltd ("Zhong Yibo"), co-sponsor/organizer of the event, assures a better performance for the upcoming edition compared to last year’s. In preparation, they have visited international art fairs like FIAC and Art Basel and pursued professional consulting and organizational support. This will provide an expanded opportunity for art lovers, collectors and brokers, who are all ogling China as the new land for diverse sorts of investment, not merely financial but creative and experimental.
Contemporary art appreciation still lacks a proper recognition and evaluation in China as most of the local public experience is limited to cultural operators, artists, and students. Many Chinese people are beginning to assess contemporary art as a "value;" collecting is a new, yet unruled practice. "Chinese people are more attracted by noisy weekends on a multilayered shopping mall and among fancy markets, instead of an afternoon in a museum or around galleries. The problem here in China is still rooted in educating the masses," says Yao Wei. The initiation of national amateurs to new forms of art and related cultural approaches is part of a process that the country, proto-capitalism and without regulating structures, is facing while dealing with the importation of foreign contents. Many local collectors still prefer to deal with artists directly to make their purchases; they use galleries as shop-windows instead of embracing field market accomplishments.
The government’s has proved its dedication to advance the promotion of the arts through investments in public cultural infrastructures (largely welcomed for the compelling Olympics) and a rising trend of a 13% annual growth of the national budget allocated to culture. CIGE is evidence of the country’s well-intended program to catch up with international system directrixes. Regardless of manifold question marks and financial risk, CIGE offers an incomparable opportunity for art improvisation and experimentation–qualities that still remain art’s distinguished predicates.
