Forty-three Chinese community art cases are on display in the form of photos, videos and installations at Guan Shanyue Art Museum in the “On the Road 2019” exhibition.
A poster of the exhibition. Photos ourtesy of the exhibition organizer.
In 2013, the museum initiated the “On the Road: Nomination Exhibition of Chinese Young Artists and Forum of Young Art Critics” project. Then, over the following five years, young artists in China contributed contemporary art for the project with various media forms. Since 2018, the organizers have shifted their focus to academic issues, and this year, with the theme “Symbiosis,” the project explores the interaction between artistic interference and urban culture through selected community art cases from across China.
The 43 exhibited cases, including four from Shenzhen, were chosen from more than 100 entries by scholars and curators. The four Shenzhen projects are New Who Art Village, “Handshake 302,” “Shenzhen Metro Art Museum” and “Sally Project (Tongfuyu Workstation).”
New Who Art Village in Guanlan, Longhua District is a popular venue for domestic and international artists doing residency projects. Since 2013, local artists have been exploring the century-old Hakka village as an artistic base for their contemporary art works.
New Who Art Village.
“Handshake 302,” initiated by Shenzhen-based U.S. anthropologist Mary Ann O’Donnell, began its first project in Baishizhou in 2013. O’Donnell and her Chinese artist friends not only create public art related to urban village life but also organize tours through the communities for ordinary citizens, in which they share the unique life wisdom that can be only found therein.
The name “Sally Project (Tongfuyu Workstation),” which is based at the Tongfuyu Industrial Area in Xili, is a play of words: “Sally” is pronounced similarly with “Xili.” The project also features location-based creations by artists-in-residence.
Through “Shenzhen Metro Art Museum,” Shenzhen Metro has been installing works of art in some Line 7, 9 and 11 stops since 2016 to create a better atmosphere for passengers and enhance the Metro’s functionality as both a transportation hub and an urban cultural space.
An artwork of the “Shenzhen Metro Art Museum” project at Hongshuwan South Station. Courtesy of the project.
“Community art is a public agenda-led, public interest-oriented and community-based artistic practice. The location-based and social interference features of community art form a symbiotic relationship between artists and communities. In nature, ‘symbiosis’ means multiple species’ coexistence, so the interaction between community art and communities should also involve a mutually beneficial relationship,” said Zhang Xinying, one of the curators of the exhibition.
Dates: Until Jan. 12
Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Tickets: Free
Venue: Guan Shanyue Art Museum, 6026 Hongli Road, Futian District (福田区红荔路6026号关山月美术馆)
Metro: Line 3 or 4 to Children’s Palace Station (少年宫站), Exit B
