Every September, Shanghai becomes a key destination for the international art world, as the entire Asian contemporary art scene comes together during ShContemporary for the most dynamic art week of the year. September 2010 shall become even more exciting, as ShContemporary coincides with the World Expo.

THE “BEST OF GALLERIES” SECTION

Galleries from all of Asia and from the western world, are expected to participate into the key section of the Fair, to take advantage of this unique opportunity to meet the very dynamic community of Asian art collectors.

Galleries are selected based on the quality of their work and of their artistic proposal, and with a special attention to make sure the fair offers the most comprehensive artistic presentation of international and Asian contemporary art scene.

THE “DISCOVERIES: Re-Value” SECTION
An Exhibition and a Conference

As rising economies in Asia give birth to new art markets where artist prices can grow a hundred fold in just a few years, the question of what gives art its value seems an important issue to discuss with new collectors. Since the art market has become larger than ever before, it also wields more power to determine what is deemed valuable. However, the relationship between art and value is just as complex today as it has always been, and the clarity provided by the art market is only part of a matrix of meanings that the word value has.

The Exhibition

DISCOVERIES: Re-Value is a group show of 25 artists curated by Mami Kataoka, Manray Hsu, and Colin Chinnery at ShContemporary that asks pertinent questions about the meaning of value from different perspectives: a show that questions the nature of the art market within its own commercial context.

The Conference

Re-Value: The Construction and Consumption of Value in Contemporary Art is a conference hosted by UACC & ArtTactic in collaboration with ShContemporary. Split between two sessions, the seminar will first invite representatives from museums, art journals, foundations, auction houses and galleries to discuss the art system that constructs value from art; and then invites collectors to discuss value from the other side – those who recognize and consume the value in art.

CONFERENCE on Collecting Asian Contemporary Art

Curators, collectors, and museum professionals from Asia, Europe and the US, will meet on September 9th at the conference entitled “Collecting Asian Contemporary Art: What, When and How?”  The conference is organized by Hou Hanru, the Chinese born curator and critic based in San Francisco and Paris, in collaboration with ShContemporary, and will examine the future of Asian contemporary art collections.
Speakers include:

Kathy Halbreich – Deputy Director, MoMA, NY; Frances Morris – Head of Collections (International Art), Tate, London; Alexandra Munroe – Senior Curator of Asian Art, Solomon Guggenheim Museum, NY; Wang Huangsheng – Director, CAFA Art Museum, Beijing; He Juxing – Director, Minsheng Art Museum, Shanghai; Tan Boon Hui – Director, Singapore Art Museum, Singapore; Suhanya Raffel - Head of Asian and Pacific Art, Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane; Raiji Kuroda – Chief Curator, Fukuoka Art Musem, Fukuoka;  Uli Sigg – private collector,  Switzerland; Guan Yi – private collector, Beijing

GIORGIO MORANDI Exhibition and Workshop

The Museum of Modern Art in Bologna, MAMbo, with the support of the Region of Emilia-Romagna, in co-operation with ShContemporary, will celebrate the work of one of the most admired Italian painters of the twentieth century, Giorgio Morandi. The Italian master’s extensive array of contemplative and introspective still-lifes, landscapes, engravings and etchings have earned him a distinctive place in Modern art history.

The small retrospective will take place at ShContemporary in the Shanghai Exhibition Centre from September 9-12, 2010 and will consist of an exhibition of selected pieces of Morandi’s work, and a full day workshop dedicated to exploring the influence that Morandi’s work has had on modern and contemporary Chinese art.

Three of Morandi’s works from the Morandi Museum in Bologna will be on display in a special area of the Western Wing of the Shanghai Exhibition Centre, together with photographs of Morandi’s studio taken by Paolo Ferrari. The Bolognese Ferrari is one of a handful of photographer’s to have gained access to and photographed the painter’s home and studio in Bologna and the still life objects which served as the subject of hundreds of Morandi’s paintings.

On September 11th a workshop focused on Morandi’s work will take place at ShContemporary. Gianfranco Maraniello, the director of MAMbo, will be present to offer an in-depth look at Morandi’s body of work and the different stages the painter’s work went through. He will be joined by Chinese art professionals who will show the impact Morandi’s work has had on Chinese artists in the last few decades. The workshop is organized in co-operation with the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou where the study of the technique used by Giorgio Morandi has been considerably popular with students for many years.

Asia Pacific Collectors Development Programme (CDP)

Inaugurated at a Gala Dinner during ShContemporary 09, CDP is a platform for emerging collectors in China and around Asia. CDP works with a broad range of institutional partners, to seek out and support those who need help and advice in starting their collections. Just two months into its programme, CDP worked with major Chinese banks to bring nearly 200 of their top clients to ShContemporary.

CDP is a project that runs all year round, to ensure that every year ShContemporary is able to bring many new collectors to the contemporary market.

Shanghai as art destination

Two new private contemporary art institutions have been inaugurated in Shanghai this year alone: the Minsheng Art Museum shall be showing "A Thousand Paths", a major survey of contemporary Korean art; and the Rockbund Art Museum, where the Shanghai Museum was first housed, has invited Zeng Fanzhi to create a project based on environmental concerns. In addition, the 150,000sqm Zendai Himalayan Art Center, designed by Isozaki, shall open to the public eight months early especially to coincide with ShContemporary and the World Expo with a show of Chinese and German contemporary art called “Updating China for a Sustainable Future”. The Duolun Art Museum shall mount a show of contemporary Saudi Arabian art "NABATT: being in the world". The third biannual of MoCA Envisage in 2010, entitled “Reflection of Minds”, as the theme for MoCA Shanghai biannual, will show the art practice in our life. Plus, every evening will be filled with special dinners and parties hosted with local museums and galleries to make ShContemporary one of the best art destinations in art calendar.

Shanghai World Expo 2010

Ever since the Paris World Fair of 1889 gave us the Eiffel Tower, the World Expo has been the biggest show on earth. Each participating country has invited top architects to create pavilions to display the culture, technology, and ideas they feel best represent their country for the 21st century. The Shanghai World Expo, which is expected to attract 70 to 80 million visitors, will be the largest expo the world has ever seen.

ShContemporary website: www.shcontemporary.info

Venue: Shanghai Exhibition Center, No.1000 Yan An Road (Middle), Shanghai 200040 China

Dates and Time:

Preview (by invitation) Wednesday     8th Sep     5 p.m. to 7 p.m
Vernissage (by invitation) Wednesday     8th Sep     7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
VIP days (by invitation) Thursday       9th Sep    11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
                                          Friday         10th Sep    11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Public days (entry ticket 50rmb)
 Saturday       11th Sep   11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
 Sunday        12th Sep    11 a.m. to 5 p.m.