不知道 i don’t know

Announcing that our next show at CPU:798 will be opening next weekend. This will also be the first new show in our new space, so I’m pretty excited about it.

The show is called “Frivolous” and is a set of installation by our artist Zu Jing. Zu Jing hails from Beijing and although she’s been working for a few years now on the series which we are presenting, this is the first showing of them in a gallery. She’s a very talented artist for whom we have high hopes! I’ve written a short introduction to the show on the website and will do a longer text over the next week.

So do join us next Saturday!

So, the ’secret’ project that I’ve been working on for the last few months has finally come to fruition. As of Friday 29th February the gallery that I am working on with my colleagues will be open! The gallery is called CPU:798 and is situated (as the name suggests) in the 798 area of Beijing, well-known and perhaps somewhat notorious for the imbalance in the art:reality ratio.

Our first show is a new installation by Wang Yuyang entitled ‘Dust is Dust,’ featuring a series of large-format transparencies of scanning electron microscope scans of dust, and illuminated crystal balls embedded in the floor.

The website is up and running, so please visit and take a look at what’s going on if you aren’t able to visit us in person. If you are in Beijing and are able to pop in, we’d love to see you!

The hands of Abbas Kiarostami

The Iranian film-maker, Abbas Kiarostami, signing posters at his show at the Beijing Art Museum of Imperial City, which closes on the 28 February 2008.

Just a quick post before I leave for Beijing in a few hours time.

I had a few hours spare yesterday morning, before I had to go to the airport to pick my parents up from their holiday, so I made a swift trip over to Kew Gardens to see the Henry Moore show.

Henry Moore, Large Reclining Figure, 1984

This is a great collection of 28 sculptures, placed within the landscaping of these botanical gardens. There is a real sense of these pieces working well with their surroundings. And it’s good to see them being used!

Despite the warnings, the pieces were being used as playgrounds by children who had been dragged along by their parents. I felt annoyed at first that I wasn’t able to appreciate the pieces in some kind of ‘pure’ state, without the distraction of people clambering over them, but I soon realised this was a great way to appreciate the pieces, by interacting with them, not just viewing them from afar in stately isolation.

Of course, this brings up questions about the preservation of art, questions which usually seem to be concerned with commercial value (as in “to touch a piece will reduce it’s value”), but I actually think we shouldn’t be so precious about these works where a physical relationship adds so much to the appreciation.