Galleries on the go
- Source: Global Times
- [09:36 August 17 2010]
- Comments
A larger global trend
Mathieu Borysevicz, the deputy director of Shanghai Gallery of Art, echoed these sentiments, suggesting that while the Expo has brought more people to town, the recent expansions are part of a larger global trend.
"Economic growth in Asia, China and Shanghai in particular is helping to fill in the cultural gaps that these places might have once had, in relation to contemporary art. Shanghai still has a long way to go if you compare it to cities like New York or London but we are upping the ante quite quickly," he said.
Borysevicz also pointed out that developments in recent months have been seen more in public or institutional art venues, rather than commercial ones.
"For example, look at the Rockbund Museum, the Himalayas Art Museum or the Minsheng Art Museum. These are all newly opened (or just about to open), privately owned public spaces whose programming is world-class and who have made it their endeavor to educate the general public, not just sell them a good investment," he said.
Pete Bradt, who helps to organize and curate exhibitions at Island 6, an art collective working out of M50, believes that while the art market in Shanghai may fluctuate in the short term, the long-term development of the scene is what will provide its character and charm.
"Things like the Expo and maybe a few knee-jerk galleries take attention away from what's really here, which is reflected by the growing number of galleries but not intimately correlated," he suggested.
The general feeling of Shanghai artistic custodians seems to be that if galleries simply react to short-term booms and busts, they will not only miss what is really happening in the city, but won't be able to properly contribute to the development of something more refined and rich over time.
Bradt contrasted the Shanghai scene with that of Beijing, where the principle art districts are much more established.
"I was just up in Beijing and I saw 798 (a famous Beijing art district). It must be 20 times the size of Moganshan Road with endless activities going on. I don't know what the relationship between business and culture was specifically, but the cultural scene had the aura of something a long time in the making."
