Cultivating the “Seeds of Sustainability” – Open Recruitment for the “Xiangshan School” Exchange and Learning Project!
May 08, 2023 TANC
On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the launch of “Art News/Chinese Edition,” we are launching the “Seeds Project: Education Program for a Sustainable Future” in collaboration with the School of Cross-Media Arts at the China Academy of Art, and initiating the “Xiangshan School” exchange and learning project. This project will run throughout 2023, focusing on the ecological and environmental issues facing humanity and all living things today. We are inviting art creators from major universities in China to submit proposals for works through an open recruitment process. The selected candidates, chosen by a panel of experts consisting of art practitioners, researchers, educators, and communicators, will participate in a three-day exchange and learning experience with “co-learning mentors” who are active in the fields of international ecological thought and art practice, sustainable design, and ecological research. The event will take place at the Xiangshan campus of the China Academy of Art from September 21 to September 23, 2023, and will include a series of exchanges, lectures, workshops, and field trips. The knowledge gained during this period of co-learning and the improved proposals will be published in a special issue of “Art News/Chinese Edition.”
This educational program aims to build an interdisciplinary and intergenerational international exchange and dialogue platform, promoting the search for new methods and ideas in art and other fields, and exploring the possibility of solving new environmental and social issues with creativity, goodwill, and sustainable development, envisioning the future of the human world.
Global warming, ozone depletion, extreme weather, deforestation, soil erosion, species extinction, resource depletion, energy shortages, waste pollution… The climate and ecosystems of the planet we live on are undergoing drastic changes. What is art?
How can we start from our own local experience, observe and care for the ecological environment, and join the dialogue on sustainable development?
How can we transform the natural views of history and culture and the new progress of ecological thought into the concepts and methods of current art creation, architectural design, and curatorial practice, exploring ways to respond to current environmental and ecological problems?
How can we optimize systemic ecological problems with cutting-edge technological innovation, and transform them into research and social practices, establishing a more benevolent future for the human world?
How can we establish a knowledge network and action force that transcends disciplinary and species boundaries, understand and solve the environmental and ecological crises we all face, and go beyond the anthropocentric view of art?
In response to the above issues, “Art News/Chinese Edition” and the China Academy of Art have jointly launched the “Xiangshan Academy” exchange project, aiming to root ecological art practice and thinking in nature, culture, history, and the current environment, inspiring and naturally connecting collaborative work. The “mountain” that the “Xiangshan Academy” refers to is not only the activity site of this exchange project, but also the historical and cultural significance of the mountain, as well as the mountain as the mother of nature and life. “Xiangshan” implies a yearning and re-understanding of the spiritual value of the mountain, as well as a rethinking and new beginning of natural and ecological environmental issues, starting from the traditional Chinese garden design philosophy, adapting to the changes of nature, and building on the Hangzhou landscape and biodiversity of the China Academy of Art’s Xiangshan campus.
The Xiangshan Campus of China Academy of Art is a beautiful blend of architecture and landscape. The “Towards the Mountain Academy” aims to connect with the local nature, environment, culture, and history while also linking with the international forefront of art and ecology. It creates a new type of collaborative learning environment that combines creation, research, discussion, field experience, and cooperation with nature. The six “collaborative learning mentors” include T.J. Demos, one of the most influential theorists in the intersection of contemporary art and ecology at the Creative Ecology Center of the University of California, Santa Cruz; Lucia Pietroiusti, founder of the “Universal Ecology” project, ecological strategy consultant at the Serpentine Gallery in London, and one of the most active ecological art project curators in the world; Zhang Jie, Dean of the Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Art College at the China Academy of Art, who focuses on the study of traditional Chinese natural views and landscape painting creation; Zhao Yunpeng, an expert in evolutionary ecology and conservation biology and Vice Dean of the School of Life Sciences at Zhejiang University; Zheng Bo, an artist who has engaged in ecological art education and creative practice at the China Academy of Art and City University of Hong Kong, and participated in important international art exhibitions such as the 59th Venice Biennale; and Yichen Lu, founder of the New York-based Link-Arc architectural firm, who is committed to innovative architectural projects, sustainable ecological material research, and architectural education. They will work together with students from all over the country to create a collaborative, co-constructed, and co-existing “academy” at the Xiangshan Campus of China Academy of Art. The “Towards the Mountain Academy” is like an organic experimental field, rather than a traditional classroom or laboratory. Through high-density and vivid course and activity arrangements, it gathers diverse exchange spaces for landscape creation and species ecology, stimulates perception and understanding, and encourages future art creators to rethink the multiple connections between nature and society, local and global, contemporary and historical, and move towards a more open and diverse development path, giving birth to new insights and creations. The initiation of the “Towards the Mountain Academy” is based on the long-term attention, thinking, and action of China Academy of Art and “Art News/Chinese Edition” on ecological and environmental issues.
China Academy of Art Xiangshan Campus
The Xiangshan campus of the China Academy of Art is located on the eastern edge of the mountains in the south of Hangzhou. The architect Wang Shu’s design focuses on how to apply the architectural paradigm of traditional Chinese culture coexisting with nature to today’s reality. In recent years, the China Academy of Art has initiated several research and creative projects based on ecological art practice and environmental sustainability. Its journal, “New Art,” launched a special issue in 2018, proposing to face global ecological problems with “ecological practice of kind humanity” and seek solutions in Chinese and foreign thought and artistic practice. Research and exhibition projects such as “Tang Poetry Road” and “Song Rhyme Today” also seek to discover contemporary paths rooted in historical views of nature.
“Art News/Chinese Edition” has closely followed the art world’s response to ecological and environmental issues in recent years, planning a series of publications, forums, and exhibitions. It has published several cover stories, including “Ecological Emergency, What is Art?” “The Coming Green Renaissance,” “Reuse, Renewal, and Recycling – How China’s New Architecture Takes Root in Reality and Revitalizes Tradition,” and “Mushroom Language: Weaving the Network of Life and Science.” It launched the themed forum “The Coming Green Renaissance: A Dialogue between Art and Science” (Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art, 2021) and planned the exhibition “Mushroom Language: The Network of All Things” (Kunming Museum of Contemporary Art, 2022), which focuses on biodiversity.
The organization and promotion of “Learning from Mountains” also rely on the long-term investment and cultivation of the jury members engaged in sustainable education and research in major art academies in China, as well as their involvement in contemporary art creation and curation, and promoting ecological art through the media. The jury members include Zhang Chunyan, Deputy Director of the China International Design Museum of the China Academy of Art, Jin Lipeng, Associate Professor of the Experimental Art College of Sichuan Fine Arts Institute and mentor of the Ecological Art Studio, Lu Sipei, researcher of the New Art Museum Research Center of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and ecological art researcher, Wei Ying and Shen Boliang, curators and art researchers, and five preliminary judges. The final judges include Cao Minghao and Chen Jianjun, initiators of the “Water System Plan” and participating artists of the 15th Kassel Documenta, Chen Xiaoyang, Executive Deputy Director of the Art Museum of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and Professor of Sculpture and Public Art College, Wang Zigeng, Deputy Head of the Architecture Department of the School of Architecture of the Central Academy of Fine Arts, founder and chief architect of PILLS Architecture Studio, Lu Jie, Professor and Director of the Contemporary Art and Social Thought Research Institute of the Cross-Media Art College of China Academy of Art, and Ye Ying, editor-in-chief of “Art News/Chinese Edition.”
The “Seeds of Sustainability” education program, supported by Chanel, aims to “face the new ecology, discover the new generation, and nurture new creations.”
❖ Eligibility
- Participants must be current art creators (including recent graduates) from major universities in mainland China, with no restrictions on their professional background.
- Participants must submit an unpublished creative plan, with no restrictions on the medium, focusing on ecological and environmental issues, and demonstrating a certain level of research, process, and creativity.
- The proposal must be original and not infringe on the rights of others, including but not limited to copyright, portrait rights, trademark rights, and other intellectual property rights. The proposal must respect the national conditions of China and not violate relevant laws and regulations.
❖ Proposal Components
- A detailed plan for the creative project, including a statement of the theme concept, a written description of the research and implementation plan, schematic images, relevant materials, and reference materials.
- The applicant’s resume, including valid contact information.
- An electronic portfolio of past works.
- A scanned copy of the applicant’s ID card. (All materials must be submitted in PDF format.)
❖ Submission Method
From now until 12:00 noon Beijing time on August 15, 2023, please send the materials by email to seeds2023@modernmedia.com.cn, with the email subject line indicating “Xiangshan Academy 2023 + Applicant’s Name + School Name.”
❖ Selected Participants Will Receive
- Full travel and accommodation support during the three-day “Xiangshan Academy” event in Hangzhou from September 21 to September 23.
- In-depth exchanges and learning opportunities with important artists, architects, curators, thinkers, and scientists in related fields to improve the proposed works.
- Publication of the completed work proposal in the special theme album of “Art News/Chinese Edition” project.
“Xiangshan Academy” Collaborative Learning Project of the “Seeds of Sustainability” Education Program
Mentor Introduction
T.J. Demos
Lucia Pietroiusti is a professor of art history and visual culture at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and the director of the Creative Ecology Center. She has published extensively on the intersection of contemporary art, global politics, and ecology, focusing on innovative and experimental strategies for challenging mainstream social, political, and economic conventions through artistic practice. Her major works include “Radical Futurism: Ecology of Collapse, Time Politics, and Future Justice” (2023), “Anthropocene: Today’s Visual Culture and Environment” (2017), “Decolonizing Nature: Contemporary Art and Ecopolitics” (2016), “Migration Images: Documentary Art and Politics in Global Crisis” (2013), and “Postcolonial Returns: Colonialism’s Ghosts in Contemporary Art” (2013). She has curated exhibitions such as “Nature’s Rights: Art and Ecology in the Americas” (Nottingham Contemporary, 2015) and the film series “Ghosts: Lingering Politics of Cinema” (Sofia Queen Sofia National Art Center, 2014). She is currently a member of the editorial board of “Third Text” and the advisory committee of “Grey Room”. From 2018 to 2020, she initiated the “After the End of the World” series of research, art exhibitions, and publishing projects with the Creative Ecology Center, dedicated to exploring questions such as “What will happen after the end of the world?” and “How to cultivate a socially just future in the ruins of capitalism?”
Zhang Jie
Zhang Jie is a curator who works at the intersection of art, ecology, and systems. She initiated the “Universal Ecology” project at the Serpentine Galleries in London and has been the ecological strategy advisor for the gallery ever since. She curated the Lithuanian Pavilion at the 58th Venice Biennale, which won the Golden Lion Award, with the theme “Sun & Sea (Marina)” in 2019. In recent years, she has been involved in projects such as the “Circularities of a Fish’s Soul” series of research and cultural festivals on cross-species awareness and intelligence (in collaboration with Filipa Ramos, since 2018), the 8th Gwangju Biennale “Every Body” (2022), and the 13th Shanghai Biennale “Bodies of Water” (2020-2021). Her recent publications include “Dwelling” (co-authored with Fernando García-Dory, 2020-2022), “Beyond Human” (co-authored with Andrés Jaque and Marina Otero Verzier), and “The Sex of Plants” (2019).
Zhao Yunpeng
Zhao Yunpeng is currently a member of the Academic Committee of the China Academy of Art, Dean of the School of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Art at the China Academy of Art, Executive Director of the Discipline Construction Committee of Fine Arts, Deputy Director of the Chinese Painting Research Institute, Director of the Institute of Ancient Chinese Painting and Calligraphy, Editorial Board Member of “New Art” magazine, discipline leader, professor, and doctoral supervisor. He is also the Vice Chairman of the Chinese Painting Art Committee of the China Artists Association, a researcher at the China National Academy of Painting, Executive Director of the Chinese Painting Society of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, a researcher at the Chinese Painting Creation Research Institute, and an evaluation expert at the Degree Center of the Ministry of Education. He is a member of the Presidium of the Zhejiang Artists Association and a member of the Xiling Seal Society. He was born in Taizhou, Zhejiang in 1963. He graduated from the Chinese Painting Department of the Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts with a Bachelor’s degree in 1989. He later pursued his Master’s and Doctoral degrees at the China Academy of Art, where he earned his Doctorate in Fine Arts.
Professor and doctoral supervisor at the School of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, and also serves as the Vice Chairman of the Zhejiang Botanical Society, the head of the NSII University Plant Network Alliance, and an editorial board member of Plant Diversity and other journals. He has long been engaged in the study of genetic diversity and adaptive evolution of relic plants such as Ginkgo biloba. Using IT/BT fusion technology and ecological genomic big data, he has constructed a Ginkgo gene bank that integrates sample library, living library, and database, and has also built a university campus biodiversity observation network using a public science model.
Zheng Bo
An artist and a Ph.D. in Visual and Cultural Studies from the University of Rochester in the United States. He taught at the China Academy of Art from 2010 to 2013, and later at the School of Creative Media at City University of Hong Kong, where he founded the research and practice group “All Things Practice Society”. Zheng Bo is a Bai ethnicity ecological queer artist who attempts to restart the aesthetic, emotional, and political kinship between humans and plants through painting, dance, and film. He believes that art is not created by humans, but originates from the vitality of all things. Zheng Bo lives in a village in the southern part of Lantau Island, Hong Kong. Guided by Taoist wisdom, he cultivates a wild garden, growing words, creating life-affirming images, and gathering for ecological harmony. His ecological art practice marks the emergence of a transcultural, earthbound originality. Zheng Bo has held solo exhibitions at the Berlin Gropius Bau (2021) and participated in important group exhibitions such as the Venice Biennale (2022), the Sydney Biennale (2022), the Liverpool Biennale (2021), the Yokohama Triennale (2020), the European Declaration Exhibition (2018), the Taipei Biennale (2018), and the Shanghai Biennale (2016). His works are collected by institutions such as the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art, the Hong Kong Museum of Art, the Singapore Art Museum, and the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles.
Lu Yichen
Link-Arc Architecture founder and lead architect, graduated from Tsinghua University with a bachelor’s degree and received a master’s degree in architecture from Yale University. In 2012, he founded Link-Arc Architecture in New York and has since completed cultural and educational buildings worldwide. He is currently an associate professor and doctoral supervisor at Tsinghua University, as well as a visiting professor at the Polytechnic University of Milan in Italy and Syracuse University in the United States. His work has been widely recognized by the architecture and academic communities, and he has received numerous prestigious design awards, including the 2015 Global Design Vanguard selected by Architectural Record magazine, the 2016 Architectural Creation Award from the China Association of Architects, the 2019 and 2022 Asian Architectural Awards, and the 2022 AIA New York Chapter Design Award.
Lu Yichen’s practice covers innovative projects of various scales and is also dedicated to researching sustainable ecological materials. In 2015, Lu Yichen designed the China Pavilion at the Milan Expo, which was the first independent national pavilion built overseas and won the Outstanding Award for the Recycling of Expo Exhibition Heritage that year, bringing international recognition to the country. In 2022, his installation “Reverse Construction” was exhibited at the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture, creating a hidden ecological system that differs from traditional human construction methods and won the Academic Committee Award and the Public Award of the Biennale that year.
“Seeds of Sustainability” Education Program – “Xiangshan School” Co-Learning Project
Introduction of Preliminary Review Committee Member
Zhang Chunyan, currently the deputy director of the China International Design Museum at China Academy of Art and holds a PhD in design. She has planned exhibitions such as “Song of the Earth: 2023 Beautiful China Chronicle Exhibition”, “Close-up: 100 Art Practices of Beautiful China”, “From Kharkov to Future Vision: Soviet Design Exhibition”, and “Migration of Bauhaus”, among others. Her planned projects have won the National Excellent Project awarded by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, as well as IF and German Design Awards. She has also been invited to give academic reports at multiple international academic forums, including Munich University, Bauhaus Museum, and the Russian Academy of Arts, and has published several books and articles in both Chinese and English, including “Design Reboot: International Development Report of Design Discipline”.
The curatorial actions of “Song of the Earth” and “Close-up” have woven a “work network” of ecological art and design, not only establishing the first national library with hundreds of practical cases but also organizing over a hundred constructive “future proposals”. “Design Reboot” has cooperated with international institutions to investigate and analyze the international cutting-edge trends of interdisciplinary fields such as sustainable design based on big data systems.
Meet Dr. Jin Lipeng, an associate professor at the Experimental Art Institute of Sichuan Fine Arts Institute and a mentor at the Ecological Art Studio of Sichuan Fine Arts Institute. He obtained his PhD from the Contemporary Art School of Lancaster University in the UK.
Dr. Jin is the initiator of the “Yuyuan Plan” Ecological Art Teaching Project at Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, the person in charge of the Community Composting Ecological Art Center at Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, a member of The Ecoartist-list, and a consultant for the Global Ecological Education Alliance. He has published a monograph entitled “Ecological Art”.
Currently, Dr. Jin is engaged in the creation, research, and teaching of ecological art. He is committed to achieving the overall healing of ecology, education, and culture through continuous on-site ecological art actions, and shaping a future university that cares for the earth’s ecological system. He has held solo exhibitions at Lancaster University’s Contemporary Art School, Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts Museum, and Ningbo Museum of Art. He has also participated in group exhibitions in the UK, Italy, South Korea, Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Chengdu, and Tianjin in China. He was involved in the planning of the “DLAF2018 Return – Chongqing Second International Live Art Festival” and the 2019 “Future World Garden” Nanchong Lixianghu Ecological Art Season, as well as the 2020 Chongqing Ecological Art Season.
Meet Lu Sipei, a researcher at the New Art Museum Research Center of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts. She obtained her PhD from the Museum Studies School of Leicester University in the UK and is engaged in teaching, writing, and planning related to public issues and social intervention practices.
Her recent projects include the first Pan-Southeast Asian Triennial Exhibition Series Research Exhibition Projects #1-#4, retrospective planning and coordination (University City Art Museum of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, 2023); the third project of the first Pan-Southeast Asian Triennial Exhibition Series Research Exhibition “#2 Responses to Participatory Art: Connecting the Dots”, curator (University City Art Museum of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, 2021-2022), focusing on participatory art in South China and Southeast Asia, and conducting long-term exhibitions, publications, screenings, workshops, and other forms of activities; the Ecological Art Practice Archive (ecoartasia.net, City University of Hong Kong, 2019-2020), which sorts out the creative archives of practitioners and conducts in-depth interviews; and the “Fallow Land” initiative jointly launched with the community laboratory, which focuses on interdisciplinary art practices in rural areas.
The article has been published in various publications such as “Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art,” “The Future of Museum and Gallery Design,” “New Museum Studies,” “Art Magazine,” “Water Elephant,” and “Museum.” The translated works include “Doing Nothing: Life and Death of Mechanism Critique.” She was selected for the Japan International Exchange Foundation’s 2019 Young Curators International Exchange Program and Para Site’s 2015 Young Curators Exchange Program.
Wei Ying is a curator and researcher active in the global field of technology and art. Her recent interests include the history of technology and art, the combination of emerging media such as life, environment, and digital technology with art. Her practice includes exhibition planning, research, writing, translation, and teaching. She serves as an international consultant/reviewer for international technology and art projects such as the European Union’s STARTS and ISEA, a member of the academic committee of “Xinrui Weekly,” and an editor of the Chinese Contemporary Art Yearbook. She has long taught courses such as “Biological Art” and “Ecological Art” at the Central Academy of Fine Arts. The exhibitions and projects she has curated or participated in include “New Species Theory,” “Bamboo as Method,” “Quasi-Nature: Biological Art, Borders, and Laboratories,” “40 Years of Technology and Art,” and “Linz Electronic Arts Festival 40th Anniversary Document Exhibition.”
Introduction of Final Review Judges for the “Seeds of Sustainability” Education Program’s “Xiangshan School” Co-Learning Project
Shen Boliang is an independent curator, art critic, and columnist for Art News/Chinese Edition. He holds a Master’s degree in Museum Studies from New York University and has participated in the International Curatorial Course at the Gwangju Biennale and the Western Esotericism Course at the University of Amsterdam. He has published numerous writings on contemporary art and culture and translated the book “Everything Has a Spirit” edited by Anselm Franke. He was awarded the Robert Bosch Foundation’s “Wanderer Beyond Borders” Writing Award. He has curated exhibitions at institutions such as the Gwangju Museum of Art in Korea, OCAT Shenzhen, inCube Arts in New York, and UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, delving into various contemporary issues through the interplay of exhibitions, literature, and psychological space. His column “Eye on Exhibitions” in Art News/Chinese Edition in 2021 and the literary unit “Magic Square” in the first Beijing Art Biennale “Symbiosis” he curated in 2022 both focus on exploring and imagining the relationship between humans and different life forms in the context of the highlighted ecological issues of today.
Introduction of Co-Learning Project Artists for the “Seeds of Sustainability” Education Program’s “Xiangshan School”
Cao Minghao and Chen Jianjun are artists currently living and working in Chengdu. Their practice is based on research and emphasizes process and collaborative work. They are committed to the dialogue between all things in reality and survival, and starting from the complex intermediate relationship and hollow space between the material ecology of water and the environmental reality of human society, they explore the changes and reimagining of ecological history and the future, forming a connecting force between all things through different visual narratives and sustained artistic practices. Their exhibitions include the 15th Kassel Documenta (2022), “Reflections on Nature” (Musée Madre, 2021-2022), the 13th Shanghai Biennale (2020-2021), “COSMOPOLIS #2.0: Reflections on Humanity” (Centre Pompidou, 2019), and they have participated in screening activities at the Centre Pompidou, Stour Space Cultural Centre, Manila Ateneo Art Gallery, OCAT Research Centre, and the Taipei Biennale Film Screening Unit. They were awarded the 2022 “Cai Guanshen Foundation Contemporary Art Award” and the 2020 “Paris International Art City Award”. Their work was permanently collected by the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art in 2021.
Chen Xiaoyang is the Executive Deputy Director of the Art Museum at Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, a professor at the Sculpture and Public Art College, and holds a PhD in Anthropology. Her main research interests include visual anthropology, South China studies, and social participatory art practices. As an interdisciplinary artist and researcher, her research projects and works often focus on the hidden histories and realities of marginalized communities. She collaborates with volunteer organizations, educational institutions, museums, and non-profit organizations to conduct research, writing, and local exhibitions, continuously carrying out research, dissemination, and cultural reconstruction of the South China region. In recent years, her work has shifted towards the perspectives of anthropology, cultural history, and participatory development, exploring new museum practices and curatorial research. Recent curatorial projects include “Durian Durian: Regional Art Research as Methodology,” “Observing the Sea and Listening to the Waves: Weng Fen’s Works Exhibition,” and “Crossing Mountains and Seas: Liu Bozhi’s Photography Exhibition on Burmese Chinese Culture,” among others.
Wang Zigeng is the founder and principal architect of PILLS Architecture Studio. He is also an associate professor and deputy head of the Department of Architecture at the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He holds a Master’s degree in Architecture from Princeton University. He served as the chief curator of the 9th Shenzhen-Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture. He has been a visiting professor at Syracuse University, a lecturer at the School of Fine Arts at the Beijing Film Academy, and an external tutor at the School of Architecture at Tsinghua University. His research areas include environmental technology, architectural exhibitions, architectural media, and narrative. He has won numerous awards, including the Grand Prize of the Academic Committee of the 8th Shenzhen-Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture, the First Prize of the FAIRYTALES2015 International Architecture Competition, the First Prize of the Urban Planning Professional Program Design of the China Architecture Design & Research Group, the First Prize of the Architectural Professional Program Design, the Second Prize of the International Competition for Design of Shenzhen Innovation and Creativity College, and the Jin Shangyi Young Teachers’ Creation Award of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He has served as the architectural consultant for the film director Jiang Wen’s movie “Hidden Man” and as a member of the design team for the National Day 70th Anniversary Parade Float. He is also a member of the design team for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2022 Winter Olympics. His works have been exhibited at the Venice Biennale of Architecture, the National Art Exhibition, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture, the Chinese Contemporary Architecture Installation and Image Exhibition, the Shanghai Urban Space Art Season, the Loud Exhibition, the Young Curators Project of the Modern Art Center of the Automobile, the Young Curators Project of the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Nine-story Pagoda Series Exhibition at the Pingshan Art Museum, among other important domestic and international exhibitions.
Lu Jie is the director and professor of the Institute of Contemporary Art and Social Thought (ICAST) at the China Academy of Art. He is also the founder and chief curator of the Long March Project and Long March Space since 2002. Born in Fujian, Lu Jie graduated from the Chinese Painting Department of the China Academy of Art and the Art Curating Program at Goldsmiths, University of London. The Long March Project is a methodology that emphasizes local contexts, focusing on issues related to art, society, and education, and using them to examine contemporary visual economies. As a comprehensive and diverse platform, a traveling art project, and an international art organization, the Long March Project has been exhibited in various international venues, including the National Museum of Art in Norway, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Lyon, the Shanghai Biennale, the Taipei Biennale, the Yokohama Triennale, the Vancouver Art Gallery, the São Paulo Biennale, the Asia Pacific Triennial, the Auckland Triennial, and the Guggenheim Museum. Lu Jie often participates in important international academic conferences and lectures and teaches at art schools, museums, and art institutions around the world. He also serves as a consultant and judge for international and Chinese contemporary art foundations and art institutions.
Yi Ying is the founding editor-in-chief of Art News/Chinese Edition and a writer and cultural commentator. As a influential voice in the field of contemporary art and culture, Yi Ying has initiated and hosted several important dialogues and discussions in the art field. With Art News/Chinese Edition, Yi Ying focuses on the new problems facing humanity and the natural environment in the post-2020 era, advocating for a “green cultural renaissance,” paying attention to the creation and practice of a new generation of ecological artists, organizing in-depth special reports, and convening cross-disciplinary dialogues and collaborations with contemporary art, architectural design, natural science, and thought leaders to rethink and respond to the changes in our world. In 2022, she curated the exhibition “The Language of Mushrooms: The Interconnected Network of All Things” at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Kunming. Her book “Kiln Change 798” (New Star Press, 2010) tells the story of the rise of the Beijing 798 Art District and the evolution of its artistic ecology from 2000 to 2010. She is also the main writer of the 50-episode documentary series “Art and Culture in China” and has participated in cultural projects such as “The World Sees the Protection and Development of Chinese Ethnic Minority Cultures.” She is also a judge for cultural and artistic awards such as the “China Innovation Person of the Year Award” by The Wall Street Journal and the “40 Under 40” (Asia Pacific) by Apollo magazine.Images in this article are provided by the China Academy of Art.And provided by the expert review panel and the mentor of “Xiangshan Academy”