Houston Community News >> Chinese Photography at Fotofest
4/6/2008 HOUSTON-- In the midst of
FotoFest’s six-week city-wide celebration of photography focusing on
China, many new international opportunities for Chinese photographers
have emerged, leading to scholarships, print sales, book publication
offers, gallery representation and exhibitions all over the world. Over
40 Chinese artists, scholars, curators and editors have come to Houston
to participate in FOTOFEST2008. They met with over one hundred museum
curators, collectors, publishers and gallery owners from 30 countries at
FotoFest. The 12th Biennial of art and ideas, Houston-based FotoFest,
has focused on China – Photography from China 1934-2008. The display of
over 1,000 images from China throughout Houston represents what one
museum curator calls the first comprehensive look at China’s cultural
history in the last 74 years through the medium of photography.
Complimenting the exhibits, a series of events have been organized around FOTOFEST2008-CHINA leading to opportunities for professionals involved with the photographic arts in China:
At FotoFest’s internationally acclaimed Meeting Place during March 7-20, the exhibiting photographic artists from China were offered scholarships to have personal meetings with international curators to show their work. Nine of the artists participated. As a result, their works have been sold to museums and collectors, received gallery representation offers, and have been offered future book contracts. The artists are YAO Lu, WU Jialin, LI Lang, WU Gauzhong, XING Danwen, LIU Ren, LU Nan, ZENG Han and WANG Chuan.
Although not part of the Meeting Place portfolio reviews, the exhibited historical works of ZHUANG Xueben and Sha Fei received much interest from museums and art publications.
On March 10, 2008, Leica’s Chief Executive Officer Andreas Kaufman announced in Houston the award of 6 Leica scholarships for Meeting Place participants, among them were four of the Chinese participants: XING Danwen, ZENG Han, LU Nan, LI Lang. The Leica scholarships help pay for artists’ registration costs and expenses in attending the Meeting Place.
In an Open Portfolio Review night March 19, 2008, 798 Gallery in Beijing, LI Lang, YAO Lu, WU Gaozhong, WANG Chuan, CANG Xin and BAI Yiluo from China showed their work to members of Asia Society-Texas Center and FotoFest’s First Look collectors’ group. The private viewing lasted an hour before the larger Open Portfolio Review of over 86 artists in the Meeting Place area. The Open Portfolio Review night allows artists to show their work and deal directly with the public for the purchase of work or gallery representation.
Exposure continues for artists whose work exhibits for the first time outside China in multiple locations around Houston. The work of ZHUANG Xueben (1909-1984) shows at three public places: Allen Center One, downtown Houston, the windows of Macy’s department store, also downtown Houston, and the Woodlands, 24 Waterway Avenue in the Woodlands. As an independent photographer, ZHUANG Xueben devoted his life to documenting China’s ethnic minorities. This series, shown for the first time outside China, portrays the life and people of China’s western border regions near Tibet (1934-1939). For a full listing of CHINA exhibits and participating artists, visit www.fotofest.org.
Other collaborations during FOTOFEST2008-CHINA project China’s cultural transformations and visual expressions:
A series of films curated by Cheng-Sim Lim showing at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, through April 6, 2008. New Chinese Cinema features Exiled directed by Johnnie To, I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone directed by Tsai Ming-Liang, Still Life directed by Jia Zhangke, and Little Moth directed by Peng Tao.
FotoFest’s collaboration with Southwest Alternate Media Project (SWAMP) presents Imagining China, a juried showcase of short films by Texas filmmakers on Saturday, April 5, 2008 at Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
On April 8, 2008, 6:00-7:30pm at the Junior League of Houston, FotoFest and Asia Society-Texas Center present Art in China’s Revolution: the Making of an Exhibit. Dr. Melissa Chiu, Vice President, Global Visual Arts and Museum Director, Asia Society, New York, speaks on the influence of China’s Cultural Revolution on art in China today.
A symposium of 20th Century Photography in China at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston featured Chinese scholars and curators GU Zheng, Fudan University in Shanghai, and CAO Tai, Guangdong Art Museum.
The printing of over 900 of the China fine art prints has been made possible by the global support of Hewlett-Packard. The prints were produced by Q-Image in Beijing with the latest of Professional Photo Imaging Z-series HP printers.
For a color catalogue of the CHINA exhibits and details on all FOTOFEST2008 exhibitions and programs, please visit www.fotofest.org.
Complimenting the exhibits, a series of events have been organized around FOTOFEST2008-CHINA leading to opportunities for professionals involved with the photographic arts in China:
At FotoFest’s internationally acclaimed Meeting Place during March 7-20, the exhibiting photographic artists from China were offered scholarships to have personal meetings with international curators to show their work. Nine of the artists participated. As a result, their works have been sold to museums and collectors, received gallery representation offers, and have been offered future book contracts. The artists are YAO Lu, WU Jialin, LI Lang, WU Gauzhong, XING Danwen, LIU Ren, LU Nan, ZENG Han and WANG Chuan.
Although not part of the Meeting Place portfolio reviews, the exhibited historical works of ZHUANG Xueben and Sha Fei received much interest from museums and art publications.
On March 10, 2008, Leica’s Chief Executive Officer Andreas Kaufman announced in Houston the award of 6 Leica scholarships for Meeting Place participants, among them were four of the Chinese participants: XING Danwen, ZENG Han, LU Nan, LI Lang. The Leica scholarships help pay for artists’ registration costs and expenses in attending the Meeting Place.
In an Open Portfolio Review night March 19, 2008, 798 Gallery in Beijing, LI Lang, YAO Lu, WU Gaozhong, WANG Chuan, CANG Xin and BAI Yiluo from China showed their work to members of Asia Society-Texas Center and FotoFest’s First Look collectors’ group. The private viewing lasted an hour before the larger Open Portfolio Review of over 86 artists in the Meeting Place area. The Open Portfolio Review night allows artists to show their work and deal directly with the public for the purchase of work or gallery representation.
Exposure continues for artists whose work exhibits for the first time outside China in multiple locations around Houston. The work of ZHUANG Xueben (1909-1984) shows at three public places: Allen Center One, downtown Houston, the windows of Macy’s department store, also downtown Houston, and the Woodlands, 24 Waterway Avenue in the Woodlands. As an independent photographer, ZHUANG Xueben devoted his life to documenting China’s ethnic minorities. This series, shown for the first time outside China, portrays the life and people of China’s western border regions near Tibet (1934-1939). For a full listing of CHINA exhibits and participating artists, visit www.fotofest.org.
Other collaborations during FOTOFEST2008-CHINA project China’s cultural transformations and visual expressions:
A series of films curated by Cheng-Sim Lim showing at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, through April 6, 2008. New Chinese Cinema features Exiled directed by Johnnie To, I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone directed by Tsai Ming-Liang, Still Life directed by Jia Zhangke, and Little Moth directed by Peng Tao.
FotoFest’s collaboration with Southwest Alternate Media Project (SWAMP) presents Imagining China, a juried showcase of short films by Texas filmmakers on Saturday, April 5, 2008 at Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.
On April 8, 2008, 6:00-7:30pm at the Junior League of Houston, FotoFest and Asia Society-Texas Center present Art in China’s Revolution: the Making of an Exhibit. Dr. Melissa Chiu, Vice President, Global Visual Arts and Museum Director, Asia Society, New York, speaks on the influence of China’s Cultural Revolution on art in China today.
A symposium of 20th Century Photography in China at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston featured Chinese scholars and curators GU Zheng, Fudan University in Shanghai, and CAO Tai, Guangdong Art Museum.
The printing of over 900 of the China fine art prints has been made possible by the global support of Hewlett-Packard. The prints were produced by Q-Image in Beijing with the latest of Professional Photo Imaging Z-series HP printers.
For a color catalogue of the CHINA exhibits and details on all FOTOFEST2008 exhibitions and programs, please visit www.fotofest.org.