Project”, one of the central columns of Contemporary Art & Investment ever since its first publication in January 2007, is dedicated to introducing readers to emerging artists’ work through the presentation of their artistic intentions and creation, also aims at exploring, investigating and showcasing the most experimental and talented Chinese artists of a younger generation. Nearly three years on, “Project” has featured 28 artists (teams) across the mainland China, Taiwan and overseas.

The editing work for “Project” seeks to give a clean-cut presentation of the core dimensions of the artist’s work, namely, to unveil the factors making on-going experiments and concept-centered thinking possible, and furthermore to dissect the process of artistic creation. The concept of the column has been evolving from 2007 edition of “the birth of a new work” to “a holistic study of artist’s work”.

In our philosophy for running this magazine, we want to make it clear that the contemporary art this magazine exhibits is in the ‘present tense’ and understood through an experimental, interdisciplinary, and spontaneous spirit. It is our aspiration to create a magazine free from conventional definitions, so that the essence of the magazine can develop to become an active and open independent voice. It is not only a cold, passive medium on paper, but also a framework based on which exhibitions, activities, publishing, and many other options could be opened up. We could call this exhibition a “Magazine – Curating practice”.

Owing to this column, we had the honor to share the pleasure of discovery and explore “secrets” in artistic practice together with 26 artists/teams and guest critics.

As a result, this specially focused exhibition “Work in Progress: How Do Artists Work?”, initiated by Contemporary Art & Investment and co-organized by Iberia Center for Contemporary Art will be finally realized at the Center from 5 December 2009 to 9 January 2010. Through exploring and investigating conceptual forms and objective reality of things in artists’ working process, this exhibition attempts to make itself an extension of and a response to the studies gathered in the column “Project” over the past three years.