ART021 | One Space, A Symphony of Voices

ART BBS

https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/HqlJGuw2Y7dcMRS8IobOhw

The evocation of the term "Approach" in the context of an art fair can be understood, on one hand, as a "path"—a method to establish effective connections between artworks and collectors; on the other hand, it signifies "entry," urging us to start from the concrete and observe the practical workings of the contemporary art ecosystem.

At the ART021 venue in the Shanghai Exhibition Center, the "Approach" section is situated in a loop-shaped corridor, encircling the central hall and positioned both in dialogue and close connection with the many blue-chip galleries at the heart of the exhibition space. This deliberately planned layout seems to reflect the organizers' ideal vision for the art ecosystem: every role holds a significant place on the stage known as contemporary art.

If the overwhelming array of exhibitions during Shanghai Art Season can be described as "a hundred flowers blooming together," then the art fair itself is a more intense "close-quarters combat"—a working interface where images, capital, and narratives circulate rapidly. In such an environment, maintaining clarity and effectiveness becomes a crucial measure of a gallery's excellence.

For this edition of ART021 Shanghai, we focus our attention on the "Approach" section. Comprising 16 galleries, this section not only includes 7 galleries from various regions across mainland China but also boasts a remarkable international lineup—with galleries from Russia, Hong Kong, Japan, France, Australia, and Korea, together forming a sample field interwoven with diverse cultural backgrounds, visual traditions, and commercial contexts.

This convergence is not merely about the format and vision of "internationalization"; it also creates a condition of juxtaposition, enabling distinctly different narrative approaches to resonate with one another within the same space: How are regional experiences translated into recognizable visual languages? How does market judgment respond to drastic global economic fluctuations? And how do the new generation of space leaders sustain quality artistic production under real-world resource constraints? This section provides a window for observation and, at the same time, serves as a mirror reflecting the realities of China's art market.

Based on this context, we interviewed six gallery directors from the "Approach" section, attempting to piece together a partial yet concrete snapshot of the present through their narratives. From each response, a keyword can be distilled, encapsulating the practical path of their respective galleries. From "debut" to "long-termism," from "in progress" to "bridge," these keywords reflect a state that is both pragmatic and continuously striving. To some extent, they collectively outline the reality of today's art world struggling forward within a complex context.

M+M Gallery

Keyword: #Debut

M+M Gallery is located in Central, Hong Kong, facing the Tai Kwun art complex. Its two founders bring together diverse cultural backgrounds and aesthetic perspectives from Europe, America, and Asia, committed to building an artistic bridge connecting the West and the Greater China region and fostering cultural dialogue with a global vision.

As a young gallery established in March this year, ART021 SHANGHAI marks their fair debut—a first voyage in expanding their footprint within Asia's art landscape. In discussing their art fair strategy, gallery co-founder Ms. Moe Zhao emphasized the special significance of ART021 Shanghai: "ART021 is the most important fair for us to understand and enter the Chinese market. This is our debut at an international-level art fair."

Q: Is this your first time participating in ART021 SHANGHAI? What changes does this participation bring compared to your past experiences?

Moe: This is our first time exhibiting at ART021 SHANGHAI, and it is also the first art fair we have participated in since the gallery was established in March. We chose ART021 because, for us, it is the most important fair for understanding and entering the Chinese market.

For us, having just been founded this March, this participation holds special strategic significance – it marks our debut at an international-level art fair. During our preparation stage, we received sincere recommendations from many of our gallery peers, who unanimously acknowledged ART021's excellence in academic rigor, the quality of its collector base, and its international vision. Therefore, choosing ART021 as the starting point for our art fair journey was a carefully considered decision.

Q: What is your primary goal for this exhibition: sales, exposure, or relationship building?

Moe: All three are crucial for a gallery's inaugural fair; together, they form a complete strategic cycle. If we must define a single "primary" goal, then our core objective is led by academic exposure, aiming to systematically develop our collector network in the Greater China region, thereby achieving in-depth relationship building.

Previously, our gallery's focus has been on systematically promoting post-war Pan-Asian artists to the European and American markets, and introducing emerging European and American artists to Asia. Our participation in ART021 SHANGHAI marks a key extension of our strategic map. We recognize that the art market in the Greater China region possesses unique dynamism and profound potential, and Shanghai is the absolute core gateway to entering this market.

Q: What has been your 'feel' for and assessment of the art market over the past year or two?

Moe: Over the past year or two, we have observed a significant trend: the art market is undergoing a profound 'Return to Core Values'. Specifically, this manifests on two levels. First, there is a deepening of the criteria for value judgment. As information becomes increasingly transparent, collectors are evolving at a remarkable pace. They are no longer satisfied with fleeting market trends or pure investment returns; instead, they show a strong desire to understand artistic context, and their aesthetic discernment is becoming increasingly refined. This is shifting the market from being 'transaction-oriented' to 'knowledge-oriented' and 'aesthetics-oriented'. Collectors are more eager to understand the academic foundation, cultural context, and art historical contribution behind the works.

Secondly, this trend places higher demands on us as a gallery. Our gallery was founded with the goal of promoting both post-war Asian art and emerging Western artists – two areas that precisely respond to this market shift. The former represents modernistic values that have been vetted by academia and history, while the latter represents cutting-edge exploration within contemporary discourse. The dialogue between the two is, in essence, the continuation and renewal of the art historical narrative itself.

Q: Please introduce one work you are bringing and its artist. Why was it selected, and what feeling or topic do you hope the audience takes away?

Moe: This time, we are incredibly honored to present a new work by Alessandro Twombly, "Night Awakening". Twombly's works are held in globally renowned institutions and private collections such as the Pinault Collection in Paris, the Gagosian collection, and the Museo Jumex in Mexico; his established position in art history and his academic value need no further elaboration. Concurrently, his first solo exhibition in Asia, "Water · Margin: Alessandro Twombly Solo Exhibition," is also on view at our Hong Kong space.

We selected "Night Awakening" precisely because of its extraordinary resonance with Eastern aesthetics. In this painting, Twombly's characteristic brushstrokes unfold like a poetic verse: the deep purple oil paint at the center dissipates like mist, substantial yet ethereal, its spirit evoking the auspicious Chinese idiom 'purple air comes from the east'. The layers of color surge and accumulate across the canvas, reminiscent of the primordial chaos at the dawn of creation. The strokes of tangerine-red and ochre-yellow that extend across the upper part of the painting roll like flaming cirrus clouds, carrying a primal force of both growth and combustion – akin both to the first light of sunrise and the moment a bud breaks through the soil.

Twombly's greatness lies in his ability to use his unique,近乎-abstract visual language to precisely capture that most subtle 'moment of becoming' within natural processes. It does not depict a specific plant or scene, but rather recreates the intangible flow of 'Qi' (energy) behind all things and the very kinetics of life itself. The purple and red hues seem to breathe into each other across the canvas, forming a resonant field brimming with vital energy.

Through this work, we hope to guide the audience beyond superficial distinctions between Eastern and Western art, towards feeling a universal metaphysics concerning the cosmos and life itself. What we hope the audience 'takes away' is not a definitive answer, but rather a pure aesthetic experience and a philosophical inquiry: about creation and dissipation, about chaos and order, about that invisible yet perceptible inner force that drives the growth of all things. This perfectly embodies our gallery's consistent mission: to stimulate the deepest aesthetic appreciation and reflection through exceptional works of art.