'West meets East' unleashed

Contemporary Chinese art is receiving a warm reception in Florida "thanks to the richness of its talent", says Ethan Cohen, a New York-based art collector and dealer.

Cohen was speaking at a panel discussion on Dec 4 for Scope Miami Beach, a contemporary art fair held annually in New York, Basel, Switzerland and Miami Beach. The panel was part of Focus Art China, a new platform for contemporary Chinese art organized by Scope.

The discussion, hosted by China Daily USA's president and chief editor Ji Tao, retraced the path of the development of the Chinese contemporary art scene, explored its transformation and examined its future from the perspective of the artists, gallerists and curators from both countries.

The panel was one of many events unfolding as Art Basel Miami Beach kicked off last week, with 269 of the world's leading modern and contemporary art galleries displaying artworks by more than 4,000 artists. At least 18 other fairs took place during Miami Art Week.

Cohen, who began his career 35 years ago, recalls that Chinese artists at that time were largely considered "outsider artists".

However, "Today's contemporary artists are so different from even three, five or 10 years ago－it's almost like there have been five generations of them over the last 10 years," he says.

"You should look at the talent of Chinese artists," Cohen says. "They have their own unique expression and a style that is so distinctly Chinese, that it's significant to the global art market.

"Chinese art is evolving so quickly that you really have to be in Beijing, Shanghai or Guangzhou every few months to see what's going on, because that's where it's really happening," he says.

Bruce Orosz, founder of Focus Art China, witnessed the development of contemporary Chinese art through his involvement in the art industries of the two countries over the decades.

So he set out to create the China-themed program to celebrate the global expansion of modern Chinese art by presenting museum-quality, cutting-edge work from established and emerging artists spanning major disciplines.

"There are so many elements of China that influence behavior around the world," he says. "I think the East meets West, and vice versa－West meets East－is what is being unleashed."

Seeing more contemporary Chinese artists making their debut on the international stage, Alexis Hubshman, founder and president of the Scope show, says, "It was something that was evolving organically as China itself becomes a powerful engine, and its soft power mandate of bringing culture and art across the oceans and borders is something that is coming to bear.

"It took some of us a long time to notice this, but certainly, in the art world, as the market itself began to pick up, there is more of a consistent influx," he adds.

Wang Chunchen, deputy director of the CAFA Art Museum and renowned art critic and curator, attended Miami Art Week for the first time, comments: "Actually there are many great Chinese artists, but their artworks are not shown here－they're not really known to the world."

Wang says contemporary art is one of the best ways to understand what is happening in real life in China and around the world, noting that China is quite different now.

"Today's China is a new China," he says, adding that through contemporary art, which underlines modern thinking, artists can help build an image of a new China, "not the China you learned from newspapers and television", but through artworks that are built on real life.

Asked if the distinctive Chinese narrative has been somewhat left behind in the artistry of contemporary Chinese art, Wang says even as heritage and tradition have always been emphasized, "it's impossible for people to come back and remake the past".

Cohen praises China's efforts in art education, which is providing young students with a broader, more global vision. And as he points out, the art-collecting market is booming in China as well.

"Ten or 15 years ago, there were not many Chinese collectors－so few that you could count them on one hand," Cohen says.

"Now today, with the internet boom and the wealth that it can bring, there are many more millionaires and young entrepreneurs in China, and they are beginning to collect."

Cohen says he is glad to see the Chinese government embracing contemporary art.

"They've realized it's soft power, it's culture, it's something that's important to the world."

And at a time when China and the United States are in a trade dispute, Cohen says, "Art can basically break through any barrier. No matter where we are, art is something we're all going to understand and appreciate."