Contemporary art dialogues with ancient history
22 November 2014–31 March 2015
Aurora Museum
No. 99 Fucheng Road
Lujiazui, Pudong New District
Shanghai
China
Hours: Tuesday–Sunday 10–17h,
Friday 10–21h
Curator: Davide Quadrio
Artists: Liu Jianhua, Li Shurui, Qiu Zhijie, Yang Fudong & Ling Yun, Michael Lin, Kan Xuan
On the occasion of the first anniversary of the Aurora Museum, the exhibition The Making of a Museum presents seven internationally renowned contemporary artists who engage and interfere with the museum’s space and collection.
The artworks will be displayed together with the ancient Chinese artifacts housed in the Aurora’s permanent collection, in an exhibition that will modulate, transform and connect past and present, within the mesmerizing architecture of Tadao Ando.
The title of the show, The Making of a Museum, expresses Aurora’s will of consciously shaping a new idea of institution, creating a meta-level of discussion that foreshadows the future opening of a contemporary gallery in three years time.
Within the challenging idea of making a new museum, contemporary art and the artists themselves become tools to analyse the different possibilities of progression and the museum’s extension into contemporary life, bringing further significance to the antique collection.
To avoid any kind of simplification or exoticism in the inception of a dialogue between contemporary art and the rare antiquities of the Aurora Museum, all the artists featured in the show are Chinese—meaning Chinese in its cultural and not ethnical connotation. Qiu Zhijie, Yang Fudong & Ling Yun, Li Shurui, Kan Xuan, Liu Jianhua and Michael Lin represent four different generations and master varied medias, disclosing a wide spectrum of responses to the five millenniums of history represented by the permanent collection.
The Making of a Museum will be flanked by a three-day symposium aimed at tracing an in-depth analysis on the role and identity of the hosting institution, exploring ideas of new models of museums and particularly focusing on the Asian current socio-political and economic landscape. The summit wants to bring together international key voices to discuss the challenges and opportunities in the cultural sector today, and chart the possibilities for professional development and partnerships among museums, taking into consideration the frenetic pace at which cultural institutions are being planned and implemented in China.
The symposium will take place in March 2015. For further updates please check our website.
The exhibition is organized in partnership with the 10th Shanghai Biennale and with the support of Alcantara.
