Sands China yesterday launched a documentary exhibition of an annuary (yearbook) on contemporary Chinese art at Sands Gallery, aiming to present an overview of Chinese contemporary art until January 9.
Directly translated, the Chinese name of the exhibition ( 中國當代藝術年鑑文獻展) means "Chinese Contemporary Art Yearbook Documentary Exhibition".
The free-admission exhibition is organised by the integrated resort (IR) operator in conjunction with the Chinese Modern Art Archive (CMAA) of Peking University. It is supported by the Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST) Library and the Faculty of Humanities and Arts. It is a prelude to an annuary exhibition of contemporary Chinese art, which is slated for next month at the Cotai Expo.
An overview of Chinese contemporary art from 2005 to 2022 is showcased at the current exhibition through publications, surveys, and records, including manuscripts, that “provide significant documentation of the evolution of Chinese contemporary art”, according to a Sands China statement provided yesterday.
Its content consists of “a yearly survey record of the overall activities, exhibitions, and published literature related to Chinese contemporary art” and is compiled at Peking University. It has been published continuously since its 2005 edition, with 18 volumes to date, the statement said.
Prof. Zhu Qingsheng, the chief editor of the yearbook since 2005, is the exhibition’s curator. He is an art historian, art critic, and artist better known as Lao Zhu, the statement noted. Moreover, he is the president of the Comité International d’Histoire de I’Art; professor and director of the Peking University Centre for Visual Studies’ (CVS); director of the Shanghai International Studies University World Art History Institute (WAI); and has headed the Chinese Modern Art Archive since 1986.
The exhibition also features the themed area “Being Together Because of Art: Art Archives of Modern and Contemporary Art Associations in Macau”, showcasing over 120 sets of art archives from the “Macao Art Archive”, which was launched by MUST guest professor, artist and curator of the themed area, Guilherme Ung Vai Meng, with the support of the MUST Library earlier this year.
In a speech during yesterday’s launch ceremony at The Londoner Macao, Sands China President Wilfred Wong Ying-wai said: “Currently, Chinese contemporary artists have been making world-famous achievements with an outstanding array of arts developed from their interactions with local Chinese cultures and customs. It is hence of profound significance for the documentary exhibition and the annuary’s art exhibition to be held in this city for the very first time”.
Meanwhile, Prof. Zhu said in his speech: “If the ‘Yearbook of Contemporary Art of China’ were a mirror reflecting the annual progression of Chinese contemporary art, its exhibition – ‘The Exhibition of the Annuary of Contemporary Art of China’ – would be the quintessence of this symbolism.”
The gallery is located on the 6th floor of The Grand Suites at Four Seasons, and is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.
This photo shows an exhibit at the "Chinese Contemporary Art Yearbook Documentary Exhibition" hosted by Sands Gallery in Cotai.
Sands China President Wilfred Wong Ying-wai (left) stands with Prof. Zhu Qingsheng as he introduces the exhibition. – Photos: Rui Pastorin
