Beijing Art Scene

Yan Xing (*1986 in Chongqing, China; lives and works in Beijing, China)

American artist Sterling Ruby’s first solo exhibition in China

"In this exhibition the artist is exploring the idea of the vampire as a way of reassessing the uncontrollable and insatiable drives that inform the darker aspects of human behavior.

These magnified "ink stains"are like traces of the human mind, imprints of the human soul.

Wang Jianwei's "Yellow Signal" occupies, colonizes, activates and challenges every last element of UCCA's extravagant volume
What is the meaning of contemporary art within the context of post-boom China? Apart of course, from that of the requisite consumer fetish object. (UCAA's 2011 program is sponsored by LVMH, Smartcar and Bloomberg, just to put things in commodity perspective). Given the vast legacy of China's indigenous cultural history, how does the post-industrial process of the global art machine play out against the weight of this country's consciousness? These questions and then some were amply answered at Wang Jianwei's epic "Yellow Signal" exhibit at the UCCA space in Beijing's art district. The consistent aesthetic shift that China has represented to me on this visit is the use of scale as spectacle, a strategy apparent in Beijing's historic spaces such as the "Temple of Heaven" as well as as its resonant modern spaces, such as Tiananmen Square.