On the afternoon of June 25, 2017, “The Exhibition for the Annual of Contemporary Art of China 2016” grandly opened at the Beijing Minsheng Art Museum. The annual exhibition is jointly hosted by China Minsheng Bank, Beijing Minsheng Art Museum, Center for Visual Studies CVS, and Wu?Zuoren?International?Foundation?of Fine Arts, and Prof. LaoZhu from the Department of History, Peking University and Chairman of the CIHA acts as the curator.

“The Exhibition for the Annual of Contemporary Art of China 2016” is the third round of the Exhibition for the Annual of Contemporary Art of China to be held in Beijing Minsheng Art Museum. Curator LaoZhu said with a smile that he was not really a “curator” of the exhibition, because accurately speaking it was not artificially planned, but an index of the various exhibitions and events of the year. In this exhibition, we can see a lot of exhibitions, which do not only present the new creations and new developments of Chinese contemporary art in 2016, but also brings together the reactions, imaginations and thoughts of people who are in the face of a variety of phenomena.

“The Exhibition of the Annual of Contemporary Art of China” is an exhibition built on the basis of detailed investigations and studies using the “Archives of the Modern Art of China” at Peking University. Different from the general art exhibition, the annual exhibition is a comprehensive presentation of the situation of contemporary art that has happened in China over the year. “The Annual of Contemporary Art of China” records a variety of artistic information every day, collecting, investigating and researching all the data according to the file specification, after the final investigation and verification, it is edited and forms the “Annual” as a “daily record”, to constitute the basis for the exhibition. This exhibition with on-site exhibits is the most representative works of 122 artists of the year, who are recorded by the “Annual of Contemporary Art of China 2016”, including the original works by 36 artists. LaoZhu said that, “It is smaller than excepted and in fact a place which is at least 6 times the area of the museum is able to basically showcase the overall situation of contemporary art of China in the past year.

Due to the lack of space, only the original works of 36 artists are able to be presented in the art museum. In the center of the exhibition hall it features a large-scale installation “Scene” created by the late artist Chen Shaoxiong, the installation of quadruple videos that uses ink and video as the medium, forming a circle, which is like a circle that is endlessly repeated; the well-known “Map” by Qiu Zhijie, has become an important creation by Qiu over nearly ten years; Yang Fudong was inspired by Xu Beihong’s “The Foolish Old Man Who Removed the Mountains” to create photography of the same name, exploring current people’s understanding on the existence of the individual and the community in the history of self-change and reproduction, which is a continuation of the artist’s iconic style of naturalistic monochrome image. In addition, the exhibition does not only focus on the artists who have been well-known in society, but also the works by the promising young artists who have just graduated from the academies, such as Wang Enlai.

Technology Media Art is an art tide that has swept the art circles last year, so that the work of media art is also a part of the exhibition of the year. Wu Juehui’s immersive installation of “Bitplace – Uroboros” Dimensions Traveler and the installation/short film “The Star Zoo” reflect the artist’s exploration of “cross-border integration”, because the space is too small to restore the original work that it is presented by video; Tian Xiaolei uses new technological means to construct the imagined Utopia with the installation of “Infinite”, adding a centrosome to the creation by VR, so that the audience can have an interaction with the work that he has created in his virtual reality game project.

The editorial office of the “Annual of Contemporary Art of China” selected works and artists based on more than 4,000 art exhibitions and events in 2016, and thereviews on more than 10000 articles as well as the archives of thousands of artists, and then it became a revised supplemental result based on the opinions of the editorial board and academic committee. LaoZhu said: “Our editorial staff do not actually have the power of choosing, nor the obligation to judge, we do nothing but record these situations so that everyone can see. People can see many situations during a year when they visit this exhibition.” The Exhibition of the Annual of Contemporary Art of China is not merely a display of works, but also tries to systematically reflect the annual overall achievements of contemporary art in 2016, intended to show the new ideas, new methods and new trends of contemporary art in China.

Text and photo by Lin Jiabin, translated by Chen Peihua and edited by Sue/CAFA ART INFO

The artists recorded by “The Exhibition for the Annual of Contemporary Art of China 2016” :

Cai Dongdong, Cai Jin, Cai Lei, Cang Xin, Cao Fei, Chen Chunmu, Chen Shaoxiong, Chen Tianzhuo, Chen Wenbo, Chen Xiaoyun, Chen Yujun, Cheng Ran, Qiu Xiaofei, Dai Chenlian, Deng Guoyuan, Ding Yi, Dong Dawei, Fan Bo,?Fang Lijun, Fu Zhongwang, Gao Lei, Geng Jianyi, Geng Xue, Gu Liming, Guan Huaibin, Hang Chunhui, Hao Jingban, Hao Liang, He Yunchang, He Dan, Hou Zhuowu, Hu Qingyan, Hu Xiangqian, Huang Keyi, Jilie Space, Wang Dahai, Jiang Zhi, Jin Feng, Ju Ting, Li Di, Li Lei, Li Liao, Li Ming, Li Songsong, Li Tingting, Li Xiangqun, Li Bingyuan, Liang Ban, Liang Quan, Liang Shaoji, Liang Shuo, Liang Yu, Liao Guohe, Lin Ke, Liu Chengrui, Liu Jianhua, Liu Wei, Liu Xin, Lu Zhengyuan, Lu Pingyuan, Lu Yang, Ma Ke, Ma Kelu, Ma Liang, Ma

Lu, Ma Qiusha, Mao Xuhui, Miao Ying, Mou Sen + MSG, Qiu Zhijie, Shen Qin, Song Dong, Su Xinping, Sui Jianguo, Sun Xun, Sun Yuan + Peng Yu, Tan Ping, Tan Tian, Tang Nannan, Tao Hui, Tian Xiaolei, Wang Jianwei, Wang Chuan, Wang Enlai, Wang Guangyi, Wang Haiyang, Wang Huaxiang, Wang Huangsheng, Wang Jieyin , Wang Sishun, Wang Yin, Wang Yuyang, Wu Jian’an, Wu Juehui, Wu Junyong, Xiang Jing, Xiao Lu, Xu Bing, Xu Lei, Xu Tan, Xu Zhen, Xue Feng, Yan Heng, Yang Fudong, Yangjiang Group (Zheng Guogu, Chen Zaiyan, Sun Qinglin), Yang Mushi, Yang Shu, Yang Xinguang, Yu Ji, Yu Yang, Yu Youhan, Zeng Fanzhi, Zeng Jianyong, Zhan Wang, Zhang Dali, Zhang Ding, Zhang Hui, Zhang Xiaogang, Zhang Yu, Zhao Zhao, Zhou Xiaohu, Zhu Jinshi

The artists who present work in “The Exhibition of the Annual of Contemporary Art of China 2016” :

Chen Shaoxiong, Chen Tianzhuo, Chen Yujun, Deng Guoyuan, Geng Jianyi, Guan Huaibin, Hao Jingban, He Yunchang, Hou Zhuowu, Huang Keyi, Jiang Dahai, Jiang Zhi, Jin Feng, Li Lei, Li Liao, Li Ming, Li Songsong, Liang Ban, Liu Xin, Ma Kelu, Ma Qiusha, Mou Sen + MSG, Qiu Zhijie, Tang Nannan, Tian Xiaolei, Wang Enlai, Wu Juehui, Wu Junyong, Xiao Lu, Yang Fudong, Zeng Jianyong, Zhang Dali, Zhang Ding, Zhao Zhao, Zheng Guogu and Yangjiang Group, Zhou Xiaohu