Asian Landmark: Toyota Project Aimed At Introducing Contemporary Chinese Art To Chinese Entrepreneurs#
A topic we at Jing Daily follow on a regular basis is the growing interest in collecting art among wealthy Chinese "New Collectors." Over the past year, we've covered important New Collectors like Wang Wei, as well as the emphasis that influential art critics like Li Xianting place on Chinese collectors purchasing Chinese art in order to keep it within the country, so the young generation will be able to view and appreciate Chinese art for decades to come.
Last fall, Li Xianting and other important critics and artists converged at the Songzhuang Art Fair, holding China's first-ever conference of Chinese collectors of domestic contemporary art, where Li said,
I have expectations for the Chinese contemporary art market, and that is that through art collection we’ll create new aesthetic values, and standards that are also part of our culture. Through [these] standards, we’ll be able to communicate with the masses [about art].
To encourage more potential art collectors and alter the "standards" of Chinese contemporary art to suit the tastes of Chinese art collectors, last weekend Beijing's Iberia Center for Contemporary Art, in collaboration with Beijing CN Management Consulting Company, launched the "Asian Landmark: Toyota Project" arts initiative. This project, taking place until the end of February, is designed to boost interest in strong art collecting among both individuals and companies. As part of the initiative the Iberia center is inviting entrepreneurs to view exhibition of 20 Chinese artists, which includes a range of works in several different mediums, from paintings and installations to sculpture and video art.
From the Global Times' coverage of the initiative:
"With this project we hope more Chinese entrepreneurs get to know more about Chinese contemporary art and think about making financial contributions," explained Xia Jifeng, director of the Iberia Center for Contemporary Art, at the project's launch on Saturday.
Xia said that although Chinese contemporary art has been widely acclaimed in the international art world, it is still in urgent need of attention within China and it is time to change the fact that foreign collectors are the main promoters of Chinese contemporary art.
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[Sun Jianchun, curator of the exhibition] said that it is crucial for Chinese contemporary art to receive financial support from domestic private companies, to help build the nation's own evaluating system for contemporary pieces.
"We have made great achievements in economic development, but little has been spent on buying artworks each year," he added. "Chinese contemporary art needs steady financial support to boost its healthy development. A continuous influx of private capital offers a chance." "Any form of financial support would be warmly welcomed in today's
"Chinese contemporary art needs steady financial support to boost its healthy development. A continuous influx of private capital offers a chance."
"Any form of financial support would be warmly welcomed in today's Chinese contemporary art world," Sun said. "For example, establishing art foundations, or simply buying Chinese contemporary artworks."
