3 Reasons Chinese Art Is Getting the Attention It Deserves
Chinese art has been a favorite genre of some specialized collectors for years, even decades (perhaps most famously, of Sylvain and Dominique Lévy, founders of the DSL collection).
However, over the past few years (and even past few months) Chinese contemporary artists seem to be receiving more international attention as the Chinese art market grows, compared to the collection of other types of artwork.
There are a few reasons why China’s contemporary art has received such attention…and why it doesn’t show many signs of slowing down.
1. Chinese Government’s New Take on Art
There is still a long way to go until China can be called a safe and friendly place for artists. But things seem to be moving toward a more open and liberated artistic environment.
In July, Ai Wei Wei received his passport from the Chinese government. It made international news because his passport had been withheld by his native government for four years, assumed retaliation against the artist who has created highly divisive, political artwork for years.
The action seemed to demonstrate that China’s staunch, at times oppressive position toward the art world was easing; especially given that this act of truce came one month after the first solo exhibition that Wei Wei was ever allowed to hold in his native country.
But China’s government is embracing art beyond such major artists as Wei Wei. In October of last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping identified art as “a foundation for China to compete in the world,” (New York Times).
Such a statement means a great deal coming from the leader of a government that rose to power with a Cultural Revolution that sought to destroy museums and artistic antiquities.
“Having for decades viewed antiquities as relics of feudal oppression and bourgeois decadence, the party now says art can ‘lead people to live a life abiding by the code of morality, in that way contributing to social stability.” — New York Times
Thus art — which the government once considered a threat to its power — has now come to represent a patriotic sense of cultural pride of which the government is in support… Just as more collectors are looking to collect their country’s art than ever before.
2. Collectors Are More Interested Than Ever
The rise in the collection of Asian art is due partly to the increase in Asian art collectors, with China acting as the largest contributor to this count.
China’s miraculous economic growth of the last two decades (due to both a more internationalized economy and urbanization) led to a newly wealthy class, with money to spend on art acquisitions.
And the numbers reflect this increase in wealth. 7.5% of international art collectors now live in Asia, with 7% in China alone. That means that, as Larry’s List estimates, after the United States, home to 25% of the world’s art collectors, and Germany, with 8%, Britain and China are tied as countries that are both home to 7% of the world’s art collecting populations.
“Larry’s List, like so many market analysts, views China as the main growth nation. ‘Collectors will create the next art superstar who will come from China,’” — New York Times
The now sizable sector of Chinese collectors coupled with Chinese collectors’ tendency to collect mainly (if not only) artworks from Chinese artists (the 10 most collected artists in China are all homegrown) has driven an increasing amount of Chinese art acquisitions.
And international collectors have followed suit to broaden the collection of art that was once elite, exclusive and cut off from most of the world, as China once was itself.
Over the last 5 years, the collection of Asian art has grown more rapidly than any other category of art collected. Furthermore, artnet recently identified China as “by far the strongest growing market worldwide over the last 10 years.”
And demand for China’s art — both from new Chinese collectors and from international ones with newfound access to a more open Chinese art culture — shows little sign of slowing.
“It’s actually growing quite exponentially. You’re seeing more world records being broken in the past five to 10 years than in the past 50 years….It has a lot to do with the opening and the booming of the Chinese art market. You have a lot of nouveau riche buyers willing to relate themselves to such luxuries…”
— John Chong, Hong Kong specialist, Bonhams’
3. Major Institutions Are Interested Too
Just a few weeks ago, the Guggenheim hired two new curators to expand its program of contemporary Chinese art.
Hon Hanru, the artistic director for Rome’s MAXXI, and Xiaoyu Weng, previously the founding director of the Kadist Art Foundation’s Asia program, will take on curator positions at the storied art institution.
It’s no coincidence that this expansion arrives after the Met centered its annual mega event, the Met Ball, and fashion exhibition on Chinese cultural aesthetics earlier this year and two years after Basel debuted in Hong Kong.
While art markets inherently fluctuate, institutions as highly regarded as the Guggenheim, Met and Art Basel rarely do.
Chinese art has definitively arrived in the West, bringing with it the opportunity for international collectors to engage more profoundly with the incredible artistic culture of the most populous country on earth.
You can browse art from such renown Chinese artists as Qiu Deshu and Li Hui now on artlist.co
