Wednesday, July 23, 2008

The Ullens Centre for Contemporary Art

The Ullens Center for Contemporary Art

The Ullens Center for Contemporary Art or UCCA is known not only for its sprawling contemporary art exhibition. UCCA is also the China's only non-profit art organization...

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Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Exclusive Q & A with DSL Collection

The following article was in Shanghai Eye Online Magazine. Click here to read.

Here is a Shanghai Eye web exclusive-

A short Q&A with the owners of the DSL Collection, one of the leading collections of Chinese contemporary art.

Shanghaieye (SHE): Could you outline your collection- what significant works does it contain, what is the representative them of the collection, and what is your ultimate aim for the collection- to produce a museum or book, to sell at auction..or?

DSL: We began to collect three years ago so unfortunately it was very difficult to have access to works from the 80’s.

What are the main ideas which direct the building of this collection?
First we have adopted to build this collection what I shall call a “Chinese approach”. In other words we try to put aside all our cultural perceptions and use Chinese cultural specificities. That is why we rely on Chinese artists and curators to help us.
The second point is that the collection has to be focused on experimental and avant-garde works. Consequently a big part of the collection consists of installations and videos.
The third point is that the collection has to reflect all the different regional art scenes like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and also overseas Chinese artists.
Today, in the collection there are more than 70 artists represented.

DSL Collection is not only a collection. It is a project which focuses on :
- Building the collection
- Communicating. Today with the internet and websites like Youtube, blogs, forums, sharing has become very important. Art is, by nature, made to be public. With the Internet, art can be dematerialized and thus create a new kind of experience, which is complimentary and never replaces the physical experience of an artwork. Internet is also a powerful tool to reach instantly people all over the world. This website, which is in Chinese and English has many interactive features, particularly a virtual museum.
We try to give big visibility to the website. We have two people working full time to spread the link on blogs and forums in China and elsewhere. We have decided also to work with a Chinese PR agency, Lime’s angels.
- Being a center of reflection. From the beginning we have put special attention on the contents, which is done with the help of artists and curators. Today we are also acquiring contents—for instance all the archives of Visual Production magazine– and also forming strategic partnerships with websites in order to achieve this goal, such as “we need money not art”. Known as “wnmna”, it is the most well known platform on multi-media Chinese art.

We are working on an e-book which will be very innovative in terms of presenting a collection.
Why an e-book? An e-book will never replace a book but can bring a different experience. It has advantages in terms of tools that you can use to create it, such as images, sound, video, 3d animation. Also it can be distributed in very large numbers, either by CD or downloads. As the collection changes, with an e-book, it is very easy to update. We do not want to produce a museum in a specific place because it is very reductive in a sense. We are working on the concept of the nomad collection which could travel from one city to another.
Sell at auction? I have nothing against auctions. Today they are very important in the art world. To cope with the principle of a limited collection means selling some works. When we decide to sell, we first go back to the gallery which sold it to us and, in 90% of these cases, we find a way through the gallery to sell it. That is the best way, we think, to establish long term relations with artists and galleries

SHE: Why have you decided to collect Chinese contemporary art, and do any other art regions/non-Chinese artists appeal to you, or are you specifically wanting to create a Chinese-only collection?

DSL: For a long time before we were collecting contemporary design very seriously. Thus we were able to gather one of the most important design collections in Europe with works by Ron Arad, Marc Newson, Bouroullec , and many Italian deisgners….After our first trip to China we decided…….to collect Chinese art and to concentrate only on it.
Why? For a single reason: if I have to characterize China today I would describe it as outscale, energy, creativity.
We believe that art is one of the mirrors of society and one can find that in the Chinese art scene. We want focus on Chinese contemporary art in order to go in depth.

SHE: What critical trends do you see as significant, and what critics/curators (if any) do you admire and appreciate?

DSL: What one should not forget is it is a private collection. I do not claim to be an art historian. Rather, this is a personal adventure which has not the pretension to replace public institutions.
As for me what is interesting in Chinese art is:
First, it is new in the sense that we can put the starting point in the eighties, so collecting Chinese art is like collecting a piece of history.
Second, the art has reflected the evolution of Chinese society. In the beginning, artists focused on a political discourse. Then, from 1995 on, social questions like urbanization, sexual identity, and many social problems emerged. Chinese society is experiencing a big bang with good and bad consequences, but what is sure is that the energy created by this situation is reflected in its art.
Third, China is a big and very diverse country. What happened and is happening in Beijing is not the same as in Shanghai or Guangzhou. I have great respect for many curators and without their help nothing could have been done. I am very close to Martina Jiechang Koppel, David Chan and Zhang Wei but this list is not exhaustive.

SHE: As the price of Chinese contemporary art is spiraling rapidly are there any works you didn’t purchase you wish you had now?

DSL: Clearly, yes. I would have loved to have in the collection important works of Xiaogang, Liu Xiaodong, Yue Mingjun, and some others, but I cannot afford it, and I am not interested in second rate works by these artists.

SHE: As the Chinese arts scene is very fluid and rapidly changing how do you keep track of it, and do you explore other regions of China besides the main centers (ie besides Beijing and Shanghai)?

DSL: We go to China every two months because my brother in law lives in Shanghai. My son and my daughter also speak Chinese so they often come with us. We have already visited Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

SHE: Do you feel you can collect certain works that would not be able to be shown in mainland China, or do you feel this is a non-issue?
It is not an issue but clearly in the collection there are works that at the present moment cannot be shown. It is not a problem for me. I respect the Chinese sensibility. I will just wait and see in the future. If the work is important one day it will inevitably be shown everywhere.

SHE: Given the current political situation between France and China, with growing tit-for-tat diplomatic disputes, do you feel this has had any effect on your collection activities?

DSL: Not at all.

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Thursday, July 17, 2008

DSL Collection in Yishu Magazine


Another article about DSL Collection in YiShu Magazine. Click on the picture below to read





Wednesday, July 16, 2008

DSL Collection in Art Exit Magazine

Sylvain Levy, DSL Collection, in a recent interview with Art Exit Magazine in China. To read the article click here.

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Monday, July 7, 2008

DSL Collection Progress

The DSL Collection is committed to bringing visibility to avant-garde methods and paradigms for viewing Chinese contemporary art. The DSL Collection has paired up with Lime' angels communication company of Shanghai to ensure that Chinese contemporary artists and their works will benefit from utmost international exposure and recognition. The DSL Collection is committed to using new media technologies to communicate on the collection’s identity, maximise the artists’ visibility, promote their works around the world far beyond static exhibitions, public auctions and glossy catalogues. Read more about the DSL Collection's activities in the PDF report.

Progress Report
June 15-27, 2008
Developments
• NYU, Steinhardt interested in organizing a lecture on campus at NYU
• Developing partnership with Digicult, interested in writing review of DSL Collection
• Eastlink Gallery: Established connection with Eastlink, interested to post “Fuck Off” catalog on DSL website
• Coordinating development of virtual exhibition of the collection with Jin Jiangbo
• Coordinating production of VIP DVD boxes
• Shanghai Sculpture Space interested in hosting seminar in September/October, follow-up
• Sh Contemporary: follow-up with Lorenzo Rudolf to include virtual exhibition in fair
• Coordinate actions to ensure inclusion of DSL Collection works in Lorenzo Rudolf’s world exhibition
• Coordinating relations with iOnly for acquisition of archives & content, developing a partnership
• Coordination with Dunhill for communication on Zhan Wang art piece

Media Coverage
• , JuArt Exitly 2008, Printed magazine and online
• Contemporary Art Gallery Magazine, Printed monthly magazine
• iOnly, Interview of 10 major Chinese art collectors including DSL Collection. Consists of visual presentation of the collection, one interview, and one online chat with live audience
Advertising, September 2008: Art Exit, iOnly, Art map (Shanghai Biennale)
Communication Tools
•Virtual Museum: A virtual museum video installation will be created by artist Jin Jiangbo for presentation in museums, art fairs, galleries, and art centers. DSL Collection DVD
: The DSL Collection will be presented on DVD with a special packaging design which will be available in limited edition. The DVD box is designed by Vincent Dupont-Rougier and will be distributed to VIPs at art fairs. A generally distributed DVD of the collection will also be produced in greater quantity for distribution. E-book
: A cataloging of works represented in the collection and on the website that can be updated to the minute and easily transferable Advertising: DSL will purchase advertising with key med
ia in order to increase visibility, particularly during art fairs
• Tsinghua University Seminar Written Transcript: Written transcript of Tsinghua University Seminar will be coming soon for distribution to universities and among art network
Activities

Past Events
The DSL Collection keeps up-to-date on art happenings and actively seeks out opportunities and art events to introduce the collection in person.
June 20 “Global Vision for Chinese Contemporary Art & Capital”, 1st Summit Forum, Tsinghua University, Beijing
June 21 Gu Dexin Solo Exhibition, Shanghai Gallery of Art
Upcoming
June 28 "If You're Happy, Clap Your Hands", Miyuki Akiyama, Osamu Watanabe, David Ikumi Nagasawa, Yu Yasuda, Ai Ryumon, Andrew James Art
June 28 Inaugural Exhibition, 18 Artists from China, France, South Korea, & Japan, U Want Art
Sept 8-16 Shanghai Biennale
Sept 10-13 Sh Contemporary Art Fair
Beijing, June 19-24
Agenda:
June 19
Elisabeth de Brabant, Independent Art Curator & Consultant
Meg Maggio, Pekin Fine Arts, Director
June 20
Megan Connolly & KC Vienna, Art Advisors
Rosa Luosha, Art Exit
“Global Vision for Chinese Contemporary Art & Capital”, 1st Summit Forum, Tsinghua University
June 21
Victoria Lu, Moon River MOCA, Director
June 22-24
Artists’ Studio Tours

Key Developments:
TSINGHUA, ACADEMY of ARTS & DESIGN
DSL met with the Dean of the Academy of Arts & Design. The seminar was very successful with full attendance from students, art collectors, and media. Next year, the event will be sponsored once again by DSL.
TANG GALLERY
Beijing, Hong Kong, Bangkok
DSL met with Tang Gallery Director, Zheng Lin. Tang Gallery has a strong network of art collectors and is interested in working with the DSL Collection. Owner of Art Map magazine, Tang Gallery is also planning to open a private museum in Beijing.
ARTISTS
DSL met with Wang Du, a Paris-based sculptor who has been very active since the 1980s and is one of the major Chinese artists today.
DSL met with Jin Jiangbo, a multimedia artist who is represented by the DSL Collection. The artist has exhibited at Shanghai Gallery of Art and currently has a show at OV Gallery in Shanghai. Jin Jiangbo will produce a Virtual Museum video installation of the DSL Collection that is interactive.
iONLY
iOnly is the foremost web portal in China for artists and people in the art industry and an international source for Chinese art. iOnly will review DSL Collection. They have a comprehensive collection or archives on Chinese art starting from 1979. DSL Collection will continue to build relations with iOnly and work towards acquiring these archives to put on the DSL website.

ONLINE POSTINGS
Art blogs
http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_48da58b301000alv.html
http://damin1978.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns!E22D135B0E62DA13!1198.entry
http://www.art-ba-ba.com/mainframe.php?tid=19614&fid=72
etc.
CONTACTED
The DSL Collection actively networks among art professionals, educators, and online apparatuses. Until now, the following contacts and opportunities for partnership have been established and introduced to the DSL Collection.
*Universities--China
China Academy of Arts; Shanghai Institute of Design; Donghua University; East Normal China University; East China University of Science & Technology, Art, Design & Media; Fudan University, Visual Arts; Jiaotong University School of Media & Design; Nanjing Art Academy; Shanghai Normal University Art Institute; Shanghai Theater Academy, Creation Institute; Tongji Univerisity, International Media Art Center, Communication & Art School
*Universities--Overseas
Bingham Arts Academy; Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); Pratt Institute; Princeton; Stanford Institute for Creativity & Arts; University of California, Berkeley, Art, Technology, and Culture Colloquium; University of Leiden, Sinological Institute; New York University, Harvard University, University of Wisconsin, Oxford University, Rhode Island School of Design, University of Toronto
*Non-profits
Yale Club of Beijing; Asia Society; Dynamic City Foundation; Netherlands China Arts Foundation; Asia Art Archive, Red Mansion Foundation
*Galleries
Art + Shanghai; Eastlink; Hong Merchant; IFA Gallery; Louis Lannoo Gallery; Marlborough; Pekin Fine Arts; Serpentine Gallery; Shin Hwa Gallery; Crossing Art; Andrew James Art; Shanghai Gallery of Art; Contrasts Gallery; Shanghart Gallery; Tang Contemporary, Fuxin Gallery, Galleria Dell’Arco, OV Gallery
*Corporate
APNC; Dunhill; Pepsi; General Motors, Strategy & Design Department
*Museums
Groninger Museum; Hammer Museum; Shanghai Sculpture Space; Moon River Museum of Contemporary Art; Today Art Museum; Mudam Luxembourg; Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art; Victoria Albert Museum; National Art Museum of China; Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive
*Art Centers
Beijing Creative Center; 1933; Ke Center; Mori Arts Center
*Fairs
Hong Kong Art Fair; Sh Contemporary; Singapore Biennale 2008; Shanghai Biennale; Shanghai Fine Jewellery & Arts Fair; Multimedia Art Asia Pacific; Shanghai eArts Festival
*Blogs
artblog.net; art.blogging.la; artc.net.cn;, etc.
*Media
Artfacts.net; Artinfo.com; Art Asia Pacific, etc.
*Opinion Leaders
Elisabeth de Brabant, Artistic Director of 1933
Jeremie Thircuir, Art Director, Art + shanghai
Ou Ning, Designer, Filmmaker, & Curator
Victoria Lu, Moon River Museum of Contemporary Art
Meg Maggio, Pekin Fine Arts, Director
Pippa Dennis, Eastlink Gallery
Megan Connolly, Art Advisor
Claire Hsu, Asia Art Archive, Executive Director
Lorenzo Rudolf, Sh Contemporary, Fair Director
Magnus Renfrew, Art HK, Fair Director
Nicolo Mori & Maximin Berko, Shanghai Fine Jewellery & Art Fair, President & Vice President
Britta Erickson, Independent Curator
Laura McLean-Ferris, Independent Curator & critic
Richard Hung & Cindy Tai, APNC owners
Bao Lin, Vice Dean or Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University
Gu Zhenqing, Editor-in-Chief, Visual Production
*Content Partners
Eastlink Gallery, “Fuck Off” Exhibition Catalog
Tang Gallery, Exhibition Catalog
Shanghai Gallery of Art, Exhibition Catalog
Visual Production Magazine, Archives
Hipic.org, Link partners
Wnmna, Link Partners
Art Lab Beijing, Link Partners
*Acquired Content
VISUAL PRODUCTION
Gu Zhenqing is the Editor-in-chief of Visual Production magazine. Also involved in the organization of the Tsinghua University seminar, Mr. Gu is highly influential in the art world and has worked to promote many great Chinese artists. DSL Collection has acquired the archives of Visual Production magazine to put on DSL website.
SOON to COME
Art Fairs
The DSL Collection will be participating in significant art fairs and establishing an original presence in such fairs. These include the Sh Contemporary Fair, the Shanghai Art Fair, the Shanghai Biennale, the Singapore Biennale, the Shanghai Fine Jewellery and Art Fair, among others.
World Expo 2010
The DSL Collection will present a large-scale exhibition for the 2010 world expo. DSL Collection will be working in conjunction with Chinese universities pavilion directors and Chinese luxury brand pavilions.
University Seminars or Lectures
Following its seminar at Tsinghua University, the DSL Collection will continue giving lectures and taking part in seminars at Universities and education facilities throughout the world. Founders of the DSL Collection will speak on the new phenomena of Experiencing Art in a Virtual World with art students, art professors, and art experts.
Opinion Leaders
DSL Collection will continue its strategic networking among Chinese opinion leaders including businessmen, officials and dignitaries, art professionals, and cultural experts.
Co-Branding
DSL Collection will identify valuable co-branding opportunities to reach out to audiences outside of the art realm as well. These include opportunities with luxury brands or corporations interested in collaborating with art resources to enhance brand image.
Acquiring Content
The DSL Collection is constantly updating itself with interesting and avant-garde content, whether through the sourcing of art works or through the acquisition of printed materials. Content is acquired from around the world.
Lime’ angels DUTIES
• Continue to bring more visibility to the collection in China and internationally
• Identify content to buy thru galleries, websites, blogs
• Connect with more art professionals & universities

--------------------------
过程进程表
2008年6月15日至6月27日
进展
• 纽约大学的Steinhardt学院希望在校园举行一场讲座
• 与Digicult网络杂志发展合作关系,他们有兴趣写DSL Collection的评论
• 与东廊画廊合作,有兴趣在DSL的网页上放“Fuck Off”展的电子刊物
• 与金江波协调DSL的虚拟博物馆进程
• 跟进DSL VIP DVD包装制作事宜
• 跟进上海城市雕塑艺术中心希望在九月或十月举办研讨会事宜
• 上海艺术博览会国际当代艺术展:跟进Lorenzo Rudolf谈关于博览会中DSL虚拟艺术展事宜
• 与Lorenzo Rudolf协调确保DSL Collection中的作品将参加他的世界巡展
• 与东方视觉网发展合作关系,加入其关于中国当代艺术档案和内容版面
• 跟进Dunhill开幕典礼上借用DSL作品事宜
媒体覆盖
• 艺术出口杂志,2008年7月,印刷和网上版
• 当代艺术画廊杂志,月刊
• 东方视觉网, 10大收藏中国艺术作品人士专访,包括DSL Collection。涵盖了虚拟作品展示,一个专访和在线的观众互动交流。
广告,2008年9月:艺术出口杂志,东方视觉网, 艺术地图(上海双年展)
沟通媒介
• 虚拟博物馆:将由艺术家金江波设计,用于在博物馆、艺术展览会、画廊和艺术中心的DSL作品展示。
• DSL Collection DVD: DSL Collection将做一个特别包装设计的限量版DVD。DVD盒是由Vincent Dupont-Rougier设计并会发给艺术展的每一位VIP客人。同时还将发行数量较多的普通版DVD。
• 电子书: 目录中的作品将在时时更新的网站中找到,非常方便。
• 广告:DSL将购买主流媒体的广告来增加能见度,尤其在艺术展期间。
• 清华大学研讨会的发言文本: 即将向大学和艺术圈发行清华大学研讨会的发言文本。
活动
之前活动
DSL Collection时时更新与艺术相关的活动并寻找更多亲自介绍收藏品的机会及艺术活动
6月20日 首届“全球视野下的中国当代艺术与资本”高峰论坛,清华大学,北京
6月21日 顾德新个人展,外滩三号沪申画廊
即将上演
6月28日 “如果感到高兴,你就拍拍手”, 秋山辛,安田悠,长泽郁美,龙门蓝,渡边理,德比
6月28日 开幕展,18位来自中国,法国,韩国和日本的艺术家,知己画廊
9月8-16日 上海双年展
9月10-13日 上海艺术博览会国际当代艺术展
北京,6月19-24日
日程:
6月19日
Elisabeth de Brabant, 独立艺术策展人,顾问
Meg Maggio,北京艺门,总监
6月20日
Megan Connolly & KC Vienna,艺术顾问
Rosa Luosha,艺术出口杂志
首届“全球视野下的中国当代艺术与资本”高峰论坛,清华大学
6月21日
Victoria Lu,月亮河当代艺术馆,总监
6月22-24日
参观艺术工作室
重要举措:
清华,美术学院
DSL和清华美术学院副院长见了面。这次高峰论坛非常成功,全场座无虚席,有学生、艺术收藏家和媒体。明年DSL会继续赞助这项活动。
唐人画廊
北京,香港,曼谷
DSL和唐人画廊的总经理郑林见了面。唐人画廊拥有强大的艺术收藏家网络,并且很有兴趣与DSL合作。画廊下有艺术地图杂志,正计划在北京建立一所私人博物馆。
艺术家
DSL和王度见了面,这位中国雕塑家旅居法国多年。
DSL和多媒体艺术家金江波见了面,这位在外滩三号沪申画廊有过展出并且最近在上海OV画廊办了个展的艺术家,将制作DSL Collection的互动虚拟美术馆。
东方视觉网
东方视觉网是中国最早的艺术家,艺术从业人员门户网站。东方视觉网将和
DSL Collection合作,网站拥有相当广泛的收藏和1979年开始的中国艺术档案。DSL会继续和东方视觉网的合作关系,并把这些有关中国的艺术档案放在DSL网站上。
在线记录
艺术博客
http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_48da58b301000alv.html
http://damin1978.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns!E22D135B0E62DA13!1198.entry
http://www.art-ba-ba.com/mainframe.php?tid=19614&fid=72
etc.
非博客
http://www.artnet.com/artist/424843885/qiu-jingtong.html
http://www.factacular.com/subjects/World_Museums
http://www.esjol.info/
etc.
已联络
DSL会积极地扩大目标群体的网络,以便得到更大的知名度。
*中国的大学
中国美术学院; 中国美术学院上海设计学院;东华大学;华东师范大学;华东理工大学---艺术,设计与媒体;复旦大学;视觉艺术;交通大学媒体与设计专业;南京艺术学院;上海师范大学艺术学院;上海戏剧学院---创意学院;同济大学---国际媒体艺术中心,艺术与交流学院等。
*国外大学
宾汉姆顿艺术学院;麻省理工学院;普瑞特艺术学院;普林斯顿大学;斯坦福创艺学院;加州伯克利大学---艺术及文化交流协会;莱顿大学---汉学院;纽约大学等; 哈佛大学,美国威斯康辛大学,牛津大学,罗德岛设计学院,多伦多大学
*非营利
北京/耶鲁协会;亚洲社会城市发展基金;中国荷兰艺术基金会;亚洲艺术文献库; 红楼基金会
*画廊
艺术+上海;东廊画廊;五行,IFA画廊;Louis Lannoo 画廊;玛勃洛画廊;北京艺展;蛇行画廊;神化画廊;日新月艺;Andrew James 艺术;沪申画廊;对比窗艺廊;香格纳画廊;唐人画廊; 唐人画廊,复兴画廊,艾可画廊,望東藝集
*企业
APNC;Dunhill; 百事;通用;战略与设计部
*博物馆
罗宁格艺术馆;汉莫博物馆;上海雕塑展;月亮河当代艺术馆;今日美术馆;Mudam Luxembourg;上海多伦现代美术馆;英国维多利亚与艾伯特博物馆;中国美术馆;加州大学伯克利分校艺术博物馆
*艺术中心
北京创意中心,1933,可当代艺术中心;东京森美术馆
*展览会
香港艺术节;上海艺术博览会国际当代艺术展;2008新加坡双年展;上海国际艺术精品博览会;亚太多媒体;上海电子艺术节
*博客
artblog.net; art.blogging.la; artc.net.cn; etc.
*媒体
Artfacts.net; Artinfo.com; 亚洲艺术; BluInc/Adkom;
*主观领导者
Elisabeth de Brabant, 1933年艺术总监
Jeremie Thircuir, 艺术总监, Art + shanghai
Ou Ning, 设计师, 电影摄制者, 馆长
Victoria Lu, 月亮河当代艺术馆
Meg Maggio, 总监,北京艺门
Pippa Dennis,东廊画廊
Megan Connolly, 艺术顾问
Claire Hsu, 亚洲艺术文献库, 执行总裁
Lorenzo Rudolf, 会展总监,上海艺术博览会国际当代艺术
Magnus Renfrew, 会展总监,香港艺术
Nicolo Mori & Maximin Berko, 上海国际艺术精品展览会,总裁&副总裁
Britta Erickson, 主席兼副主席,上海国际艺术精品博览会
Laura McLean-Ferris, 独立馆长及评论家
Richard Hung & Cindy Tai, APNC所有者
包林, 副院长, 清华大学美术学院
顾振清, 主编, 视觉生产
*Content Partners 内容
东廊画廊 “Fuck Off” 目录展
唐人画廊, 目录展
沪申画廊,目录展
视觉生产,档案
Hipic.org, 合伙人
Wnmna, 合伙人
艺术实验室, 合伙人
*视觉生产
视觉生产
顾振清是视觉生产的主编,同时也参加了清华大学研讨会。顾先生对艺术世界非常有影响力并且曾提拔了多名有名的中国艺术家。DSL Collection将会在视觉生产杂志的文档放在DSL网站上面。
即将开幕
艺术展
DSL Collection将参与重要的艺术展览会并且筹建一台类似的展览会。其中包括当代艺术展,上海艺术展,上海双年展,新加坡双年展,上海国际艺术精品展览会。
2010年世界博览会
DSL Collection将出席2010世博会大规模的展览。DSL Collection将与中国大学联手。
大学研讨会和讲演
继清华大学研讨会之后,DSL Collection 会继续在世界各地的大学,教育机构展开讲演和参与研讨会活动。DSL Collection 的创办人将与艺术界的学生、教授和学者做关于“虚拟世界中的艺术体验新现象”的交流。
意见领袖
DSL Collection 将继续在中国权威人士间的人际网络策略,这些人士包括:商人、政府官员、艺术教授和文化界专家学者。
合作品牌
DSL Collection 将挖掘有价值的商业合作伙伴,未来的受众群也将触及艺术届之外的人群。这些可能的合作伙伴包括奢侈品牌,或是对艺术品牌资源有兴趣,希望与我们合作以提高品牌形象的企业。
内容选取
DSL Collection 的内容取自世界各地。无论是直接的艺术作品,或来自印刷品资料,我们都以有趣和前卫的目标不断跟新展品。
Lime' angels的任务
• 在中国和世界范围内给收藏作品更多能见度
• 找到好的内容,通过画廊、网站和部落格方式购买
• 联系更多艺术学校和教授

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

DSL Collection

It is a collection done by Sylvain and Dominique Levy called the DSL Collection. It is a carefully put together collection of 120 pieces of artwork from installations to paintings to videos of Chinese Contemporary Artists. It is a collection that isn't about profiting from art but solely for increasing artist exposure and educating people about Chinese Contemporary Art. So here are a selection of the artwork with commentary by Christof Buettner.

Zhou Tiehai

After having realized that he was “not on the list”, i.e. the shopping lists of Western curators touring China in the early 1990s, Zhou Tiehai set up a project to propel himself on the list. Following some self-marketing works, he introduced Joe Camel as one of the prime protagonists of his paintings until today. The Camel’s name constitutes a double bind: “Joe” comes very close to the Chinese pronunciation of “Zhou” and it is a bold adaptation of a prime icon of Western commercialism whose big nose makes for a distinctly non-Chinese appearance. Over the years, Joe Camel turned up in Zhou’s appropriations of famous Renaissance to Victorian paintings, until most recently manifesting himself in rather explicit re-creations of works of Jeff Koons and other celebrities of the 1990s.
A most notable feature of Zhou’s mode of production is not to paint by himself but to prepare computer generated blue prints, while employing assistants to do the actual work. Another feature is a conscious disregard of virtuosity in painterly execution, a style he some times calls “bad painting”. With this habits does Zhou not only make a mock of what is internationally (= in Western terms) regarded as high art, he also invented stereotypes for the complacent tastelessness of modern China’s nouveau riches.

All of these strategies create a distinct otherness, which, through constant communication via the channels of the global art circles, sets Zhou and his work apart from other artists. Today Zhou Tiehai is on top of the list."

Wang Du

It takes small wonder that the sculptures are modelled at images from a Japanese Internet porn-site. Once meant to give the onlooker power over the viewed object, now the object seems to exercise power over the viewer. This act of a re-orientation of an original gaze-intention may be a good illustration of the way Wang Du works. Based on his conviction that the media threaten to take over the definition of “reality”, Wang is a masterly manipulator of images himself. He uses illustrations from printed and electronic media from all over the world as inspiration for his installations. Wang does not regard his work as sculpture, but prefers to talk of it as three-dimensional images. He is also not interested in dealing with specific discourses. The overarching theme of his work rather is the global situation of a thorough medialization and informalization where practically every society in the world has to deal with the political and social impact of mass-media. This also means that he does not work within the framework of some kind of “Chinese” tradition although he draws a certain amount of material from Chinese sources.


Wang Guangyi


Although painted in 2004, Louis Vuitton belongs to the Grand Criticism-series that has started in 1990. To understand why a world famous artist like Wang Guangyi maintains a series over such a rather unusually long time, one needs to look into the artist’s personal history. Coming from a background that was as far removed from art, as it was poor, his outstanding talent paved his way into the Chinese Academy of Art in Hangzhou. Right from the start it was Wang’s openly declared goal to follow the general Deng Xiaoping-era dream: becoming rich and famous. As he regards himself a Chinese nationalist, he wanted to make clear to the world that he and his art are Chinese while making known to China that he is rich. Seriously studying all the new knowledge on international art and theory that became available to him at the academy, Wang also took up opportunities to promote him self, e.g. getting into television and participating in the famous China/Avant Gard Exhibition of 1989. During the 1980s, he created subtle paintings like the Northern Wasteland series and, a milestone in the history of contemporary Chinese art, his cool variations of Mao Zedong paintings of 1988 among which Mao Zedong AO is most important. After these works had brought him into conflict with the authorities, Wang reached an artistic and finally economic breakthrough as inventor and leader of the Political Pop-style when he combined Maoist propaganda motifs with international consumer brand names painted in a pop-art like manner - the Grand Criticism series. These works first gained international attention around the early 1990s through the sheer misunderstanding to take them as subversive anti-communist underground art and later in China itself where they were equally mistaken as aggressively anti-neo-colonial. As so often, part of both is true. Today Wang is somewhat trapped in the contradiction that the wealth so important to him ultimately comes from foreign money as there is still no big enough domestic market for contemporary art.


Yang Fudong


"Filmed over a five years’ period from 1997 to 2002 Yang Fudong’s first black and white movie tells the story of Zhuzi, a young intellectual, who is consulting one doctor after another out of a diffuse feeling of sickness. As no physical illness can be diagnosed, one may only guess that the true origin of his discomfort may be found in a profound discontent with his life.
A central theme of Yang Fudong’s work is the human condition of the urban intellectual. His protagonists mostly belong to the artist’s own generation of people between 20 and 40. This generation is old enough to remember life before the outset of opening and reform in the late 1970’s but spent most of its formative years under the new society. For many the changed situation created a lasting feeling of being strangely un-housed in their own lives. The unclear symptoms of Zhuzi may be due to such a disrupted inner balance that constantly has to react to fast altering external circumstances and thereby causes a diffuse sense of restless dissatisfaction that finally results in an intense but silent psychological drama.
Stylistically Yang’s videos often, though not exclusively, draw upon the visual language of 1920’s movies. This adds a certain local flavour to his work as in China a “typical twenties-style” most prominently existed in the cosmopolitan port-city of Shanghai with its political dominance of western colonial powers. Even though Estranged Paradise has a narrative structure it is not a film in strict terms. There is a lot of interaction among the characters but most of the auditory elements comprise of music and a narrator’s voice and not of direct conversation among its protagonists. Like Yang’s other works, Estranged Paradise is filmed very slowly and airs a melancholic atmosphere that leaves the viewer in a mood like a soft awakening from a mildly irritating daydream.
As a follow-up to Estranged Paradise, Yang has planned a five video long-term project featuring a group of intellectuals. The first film Seven Intellectuals in the Bamboo Forrest appeared in 2003, gaining wide international attention. In referring to the semi-historical circle of the 3rd century literati known as the Seven sages of the bamboo grove, Yang points back into Chinese history, which is an age old means of subtle self-expression of educated Chinese."

Xu Zhen

Xu turns these two prominent elements of public life into the private object of a washing machine, then drags them out of their obvious oblivion into the white cube, which is an act of addressing the politically not so opportune as well as connecting with global practices of choosing and presenting art. As one of the organizers of the nearly legendary 1999 Art for Sale show, a short lived attempt to create an appropriate way of dealing with art in Shanghai by exhibiting in a department store, and as co-founder of Bizart centre, Xu Zhen became a leading figure in Shanghai’s progressive art circles. His photography, video and installation work very often comes as performative and mostly is conceptual, with the body - the individual as well as the social one - as a main subject. Xu tackles political content that the Chinese government would prefer to be left unmentioned, such as violence, death and sexuality while remaining below the level of official attention. Rainbow, one of his most well known videos, documents the successive reddening of a human back through beating without actually showing the single hits. By the selective depiction of sheer violence, the work discusses the position of the individual body within Chinese society, but can also be read as a metaphor for the whole Chinese people as a body and as how this body is treated by those who hold the power to do so. The uncomfortable little bus has a thousand-fold daily interaction of its own with the private and - consequently - the public body."

Zhang Huan


"A naked man sitting in front of a wall, his forehead bold, long hair in the neck, skin of warm brown-bronze complexion. Eyes closed, mouth half open, the face appears peacefully concentrated. Though, something is irritating the viewer’s gaze: small black dots scattered all around the body, at a second glance identified as insects.

The nude is Zhang Huan spending a few hours sitting motionless in a public loo in Dashan Village and the print is a documentary of one of the best-known performances of the 1990’s in Beijing. After the first wave of post-Mao avant-garde art had come to an abrupt end in 1989, most progressive artists had to put themselves out of public sight to avoid pressure. Many artists moved to a village in the eastern outskirts of Beijing, known as East Village. Excluded from public exhibition spaces, new forms of private artistic activities emerged as well as changes in the subject matter of the art works. It was no longer the big idea - humanism, political ideology or social critique - like in the 1980’s. Now the focus lied on the daily experience of the “average man”. At a time, when China’s socio-economic restructuring gained full momentum, many Chinese still had to use the most impossible of public toilettes.

The statuesque appearance and the colour of Zhang Huan’s body reminds the viewer of a bronze sculpture, at least in the photographic documentation, which, after the performance was over, became “the work itself”. By choosing an act of physical endurance as his artistic medium, Zhang not only created a formally strict and multi-layered artwork, he also managed to comment on public issues at a time when this was less wanted. Now, living in New York, Zhang Huan experiences fewer limits than before, but still uses his body as a medium."

Ciu Xiuwen

Trained as a painter, she has been focusing on themes of sexuality and gender early on, once shocking her audience with paintings of naked men whose genitals she particularly emphasized; something even more uncommon in China than in the West. At the occasion of a dance night out in a posh Beijing club, she realized that there is another side to the beautiful glamour girls on the dance floor. “Like hell in heaven, or heaven in hell.” as she puts it. Nevertheless, she felt that oil painting, her main artistic medium so far, would not be sufficient to express what she wanted to communicate. Shortly afterwards Cui came into contact with shooting video and had found her technique. Hiding a camera in the ladies’ room of an expensive Beijing night-club, she simply filmed the women in front of the mirror. They rearrange or change clothing, check out their appearance, admire themselves, re-do makeup and exchange gossip. It is only towards the end of the video that it becomes apparent that what seems to be ordinary girls enjoying an evening out in fact are prostitutes having a break from work. They also tuck away their money in bras and briefs, call their customers to arrange for new dates and catch their breath before returning to the clubroom.

Cui does not comment on the scenes but offers a rare insight on one particular facet of the much-acclaimed China boom. Like Zhang Dali’s head down suspended plaster casts of migrant workers in Chinese Offspring the women in the lavatory do the lowest of services to those who profit most of the streams of money in contemporary China. And by doing so, add to the glamor of the scene. Watch art here.

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