Included in the exhibition are the Contemporary Terracotta Warriors from one of our favorite, Yue MinJun. Having been a big fan of his over the past years and seeing these sculptures in real life back in mid 2008 in Hong Kong, the three dimensional aspect of these sculptures really heighten the message behind Yue’s distinctive artwork: A laughter that appears to be convulsive, intense, and manic, but also insincere and forced, offering political commentary on the irony between personal freedom and happiness in modern Chinese society. A culturally significant message artistically expressed through a medium and form that transcends cultural boundaries.

Perhaps one of the best known artist of the Cynical Realist movement that emerged in the 1990’s after the
Tiananmen student protests in 1989, and the suppression of artistic expression by the Chinese government in that era, Yue Minjun was one of the first artists to translate this new ironic view of contemporary life, one that is expressed in the nihilistic hilarity at a time when little was funny. Other notable artists of from this era the likes of Zhang Xiaogang, and Huang Yong Ping will also be seen at the exhibition.

On show from December 11, 2009 to February 7, 2010.

Take a look at the video interview with the curator below, where you will also get a good look into what the exhibition entails.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Images: AM

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Arario New York is pleased to present Yue Minjun: Smile-isms, an exhibition of new works by the internationally renowned artist Yue Minjun. On view from October 29 through January 16, 2010.

The exhibition of a new set of 28 original prints will be shown for the first time. These prints beautifully illustrate the iconic laughing face and figure of the artist as seen manifested in various states of solitary play and fantastical camaraderie. Yue Minjun’s joyful, smiling figures offer an ironic commentary on the concept of personal freedom and happiness in modern Chinese society. The set of prints will be accompanied by the sculptures as well as paintings.

Yue Minjun has been one of China’s leading contemporary artists. Emerging in response to the Tiananmen Square incident of June 1989, he has been a key figure in the Cynical Realism movement. 

 His artwork in reference to the Tiananmen Square incident has in the past has attracted a great deal of attention, in part due to the alleged underlying political message, as well as  the record prices that his art’s been able to fetch;  With his most expensive ”Gweong-gweong” piece selling for US $6.9 million in 2008, not to mention the ‘Execution’  piece (seen below) which became the most expensive work ever by a Chinese contemporary artist at the time, sold in 2007 for £2.9 million pounds (US $5.9 million) at London’s Sotheby’s, a week after his painting ‘Massacre of Chios’ sold at the Hong Kong Sotheby’s for nearly $4.1 million.

A great exhibition not to be missed if you are a fan of Chinese contemporary art. A reception will be held at the gallery on October 29, 6-8 pm.

Yue Minjun Smile-isms at Arario Gallery
October 29 – January 16, 2010
Opening Reception October 29, 6-8pm.

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Shanghai Biennale is one of the biggest art events in China, thousands of foreign art buyers coming to the city fishing for the best Chinese art this week. Most of them are like glamorous version of stock brokers, but without them most of the Chinese artists possibly will end up selling Chinese Big Issues and China will forever be a country of making products instead of creating. After spending the last week running around opening parties every night, it is time to show some of my favorites.

Butterfly Dream @ Shanghai MOCA

Shanghai MOCA has been really kind and supportive to us, especially Alicia who created the Art Lab + Diana Freundi, one of the museum curators for the exhibition  “ Butterfly Dream”. The idea of the exhibition is to represent the transformation of Chinese contemporary art. “Like suddenly waking from a dream, China’s entrance onto the scene was overnight”. Well that’s like most things in China, but has Chinese art really transformed into something new or it simply a renaissance of an already established culture? When I first arrived in Shanghai and partnered in the Da>Space gallery, it took me a month or so to figure out Graffiti art is dead in China, or it could never be born. It’s taking me few years to start to understand Chinese art and now I think it is finally going somewhere new and different.

Baby is a popular subject for this show… some does it better than others. this device made me think of the in the animation tower in Studio Ghibli Museum (Tokyo).

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October 9 is definitely a date to put into your diary with The Saatchi Gallery set to open its new space in London at the Duke of York’s Headquarters building. With the appearance of some of the finest contemporary artists from China this inaugural exhibition: “The Revolution Continues: New Art from China” could not be any more exciting. Founded by advertising executive Charles Saatchi this showcase will feature works from 30 leading painters, sculptors, and installation artists with the likes of Yue Minjun, Feng Zhengjie, Zhang Xiaogang, Zeng Fanzhi, Zhang Dali, Zhang Haiying, Qiu Jie amongst others featuring in large.

Thanks to Art Observed for the info.

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Hosted at the Museum of Tomorrow (MOT) Arts gallery in Taiwan, the exhibition will also see for the first time all five of these artists express their respective creative talents in the form of three dimensional figures/ sculptures. The centerpiece being a Kaws Companion collaboration with Yue Min Jun’s ‘Smiling Man’.

Yue Min Jun having already achieved phenomenal success worldwide, just late last month (28th of May) sold yet another great piece named ’Gweong Gweong’ at a record setting price of just under 7 million US Dollars (HK$54,087,500) at the Christie’s auction in Hong Kong. This is a sure indication of the tremendous growth in the popularity of Chinese Contemporary Arts.

The Exhibition will run for a month until the 27th of July. And the figures will be available for sale at the event limited to 100 sets for each design. I’m sure by now you will have completely forgotten the Chinese names mentioned above. So visit the official website here for a visual overview of the exhibition details (I say visual because the site is … in Chinese). Or just have a look at the image below.

Thanks for the info from MOTstyle via Supertouch.

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Adam Bryce

2007 has been a year in which my personal interest in Art has sky-rocketed, always interested, but this year has seen this interest become a big passion of mine, while numerous artists have done great things throughout the year, Takahashi Murakami has undoubtedly been unmatched in terms of his profile, there hasn’t been a magazine or website I haven’t read his name in over the year, his colab with Louis Vuitton, his work with Kanye West and his show at MOCA all outline different aspects of pop culture he’s been managed to touch, it seems as though after such a long career, 2007 was his year. Dan Colen, Dash Snow, Will Sweeney, Damian Hirst, Shawn Mortensen and WK Interact have all been involved in a big year of art for me.

Adam Bryce

SlamxHype

Chris Gibbs

As for artist of the year?  I don’t look at fine artists like you would pop artists.  They don’t have an album of the year, rather you take in their full body of work.  That being said, An artist that I am really feeling right now is Jayson Musson.  He is a Philly native who does political and social commentary as an artform.  He can be highly offensive at times but in this politically correct (bland) world.  A little reality is a breath of fresh air, and by reality I am not talking about that rehearsed reality tv bullshit.  Rather someone saying shit like it is.  Dude is hillarious!!!

Chris Gibbs

Union LA

Christian Parkes 

Let’s be honest, it’s not even close, the artist of the year is M.I.A.. 

So what if she doesn’t paint, push pixels or make crappy shirt graphics, she’s a true artist in every sense of the word.  She creates using a language that she has made all of her own and released the best album (Kala) and best single (Paper Planes) of the year.  Compliment with an aesthetic that she owns and a razor sharp political tongue and you have the consummate triple threat; brains, brawn and beauty.  She’s Barbarella x Sylvia Pankhurst for Generation Now.

If America wants to get out of the quagmire of the last seven years it’ll need to grow a set of balls and vote for a radical change in the White House come November.  That change shouldn’t come in the form of a black president, or a female president, but in the form of a Sri Lankan, female president.  And you think I’m kidding…

Christian Parkes

Dan "Jagger" Ball

If you mean art as in proper art then Oliver Payne & Nick Relph for their film "Swoon Soon". They won the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale in 2003 for best under 35 and it hardly made the British press, a right disgrace that. As soon as Emin does its all over the press like she’s some British champion we should all be proud of. This is why the media are not to be trusted. Also I think Boogie is a great photographer. If you mean artist to include music then Underground Resistance and Don Corleon get my vote for 07.

Dan "Jagger" Ball

Unkle

Surrender

Dante Ross

Judith Supine for the constant tearing up of the New York city streets and the dropping of a 50 x 15  foot piece off of the Manhattan bridge the summer. Couple that with the wheat pasting of the army recruiting center in broad daylight as well as the floating piece dropped in the Hudson river Judith would have to be my choice.  Judith Supine is underground, Supine doesn’t play the gallery game and his work is unique and original. It’s only a matter of time before he gets recognized beyond New York . I love Judith’s manic mission to bomb every and anything possible and Judith’s refusal to take corporate underwriting of any sort. Judith Supine is without a doubt a rebel and we need that right about now.

Also Ron English. The guy is just an amazing painter. Thought provoking, funny and his renderings are just tremendous. He will never be confused with a graphic designer on any level. The man is political, his reconfiguring of billboards was a great comment on America and consumerism and his recent work he did in Beirut another feather in his cap. I also love his newesr work, which is a departure of sorts. Watching his growth from afar is a pleasure the guy simply put can really, really paint.

Dante Ross 

Dmote

Best artist is Manuel O Campo, I’ve always been into his paintings but hadnt looked at them for a while, my friend David Griggs had done some colabs with him earlier this year some huge brush painted billposter style works, they were amazing. My other best artist for the year is Tomoo Gokita, Tomoo is showing with Dietch and is also the coolest tshirt designer aswell he has an amazing ability to work at the top in both worlds and remain credible. I have introduced him to the artist network programme at RVCA this year, his t-shirts are the coolest ever.

Dmote

RVCA

Erik Brunetti

The term "Artist" is used and tossed around with far too much generosity in this industry; 90% of the individuals that are coined as "Artist" in this industry are more or less graphic designers at best; professional con-artist and brown nosing social climbers who whore themselves for the sake of being famous and adored. That is my answer.

Erik Brunetti

Fuct

Jarret Reynolds

I’ve been racking my brain to pick my favorite artist of the year.  The usual suspects have popped into my head (Kaws, Kehinde Wiley, Tom Sachs, etc.)  To be honest, I’ve been to very few ‘real’ art galleries this year, and I didn’t discover a new favorite artist in 07′.   That is until I heard Lord Nasty.  I don’t know much about Lord Nasty, but his album ‘Baptized in Pussy Juice’ is most definitely a work of art. Lord Nasty mixes the nastiness of 2 Live Crew with the voice of southern Baptist church choir singer.  His albums are low budget, recorded on tape via a karaoke machine.  Comparisons have been made to Blowfly and Dolemite, but the Lord’s subject matter is on whole another level.  Its hard to describe, but his music sounds dangerous and offensive, mixing a music style and subject matter that shouldn’t be combined, AND in a non-ironic way (take that hipsters!).  His lyrics are insanely dirty’ check the songs ‘Religious Slut’,  ‘That Slut from Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints’, and ‘Nasty on a Spiritual Hymn’ for lyrics that are guaranteed to make you cringe.  My girlfriend hates Lord Nasty, not allowing me to play his music when she’s around. If you’re not offended by Lord Nasty, there’s something wrong with you.

Jarret Reynolds

Nike

Jörg Haas

The photographer E. Hansen. He is a friend of mine and we’ve been in touch for a while. He just sent me his new book and the photographs are almost surreal in their precise-ness. I’m having a show at the Beinghunted.gallery online shortly.

Jörg Haas

Beinghunted

AM-Firmament

Fraser Cooke

Best Artist would probably be Takashi Murakami, mainly in terms of his impact and wide visibility as a true Pop artist. He was the most prominent But there are so many others that this question is very tough. I like what Will Sweeney and Susamu did for Undercover, I like the work of Matzu, Damian Hirst is always interesting, it¹s just too tough to name one. The best show I saw this year was Roppongi Crossing at Mori Museum in Tokyo which was a group show of contemporary Japanese artists. Standouts were Yoshio

Yoshimura, Koichiro Tsujikawa, Iichiro Tanaka.

Fraser Cooke

Nike

Joe hahn

Yue Min Jun.  Yue’s been killing it in the art world this year.  If you haven’t heard, art is a big business now.  Particularly, Chinese Art.  Yue has been at the head of the pack with his oil paintings of a pinkish chinese man with the biggest smile on his face.  Forging the way from a post- Tienenmen Square era as China dominates the economic global market, Yue’s paintings give you a sense that ‘…it’s all good’.  http://www.yueminjun.com/

On the local front, the next man to look out for is Ekundayo.  A Hawaiin native, now presiding in LA.  Ekundayo started selling out his gallery shows while still attending school at Art Center College Of Design.  His street grafiti-esque edge with the sensibilities of J.C. Leyendecker makes him a force to be reckoned with.  His paintings personify the everyday struggles of life through his dynamic characters.  Make sure to check him out before you’re too late to the game.

Joe Hahn

Linkin Park

Suru 

Le Messie

David Keith Lynch

I’d say him next year too, and the year after that…and after that one…. I think you get the picture.

Le Messie

False

Michael Leon

Dungeon Majesty, Dungeon Majesty is cable access TV show about 4 girls who play Dungeons and Dragons and act out their roles in live action. The show, including all effects and stop motion animation, is produced by the girls themselves. I’m not into D&D or role playing games but I love the green screen/video effects segments of each show and the deadpan way the game playing parts are acted out.  You are at once noticing how boring it is to watch someone else play a game like this and then cutting to a spectacular low-fi effects segment, which is pretty interesting. Not to mention the girls are hot and the intro is pretty tough.  I recommend episode 5 if you like the effects and you want to skip the game part.

Michael Leon

Nike

Paul Mittleman

Matthew Barney, for about twenty years Matthew’s work has been both a challenge visually and mentally for me. While I still do not understand it all each year it moves and motivates me more in many, many ways. Perhaps one day it will all become clear?  However, the game keeps me exploring it and he keep the search fresh.

 Paul Mittleman

 Stussy 

Sean Reveron

This is a really hard question…because I know so many talented artists…alright…ok…it’s a tie! Marcus Burrows and Arik Roper – both artists have styles that really speak to me. I love the depth of their work and their sources of inspiration.

Sean Reveron

Rockers NYC

Shawn Mortensen

I’m gonna say M.I.A. wins Best Artist – in so far as she is representative of a critical confluence of World Issues and is inspiring the cusp of progressive music and activism! I think her story of being a Refugee and her alchemical gifts of synthesizing music genres and fashion trends makes her a stand out representation of Globalization! Beats & rhythms wise – she’s influencing everyone from icons like  Gwen Stefani and the Beastie Boys to emerging artists and people who are just  getting started !

Shawn Mortensen

Steven Vogel

That depends in what discipline we are taking out, music, painting etc. The best musician of the year, fuck, I’d have to say, and as far as new releases in 07 are concerned it is a tie between Robert Plant/Alison Krauss and Robb Flynn from Machine Head for possibly writing some of the best music in a long time.

As far as street artists are concerned, Jose Parla & Evan Hecox. As far as “traditional” artists are concerned, Joe Coleman, by a long shot.

Steven Vogel

Black Lodges

Tim Tsui

For Artist, must be Takashi Murakami.

He can success combine art with commercial and make it worldwide and well known. Even Louis Vuitton made a special collection with him to celebrate his exhibition at MOCA LA, you can know how success he are. much respect!!

Tim Tsui

Team Zero

Will Sweeney

The best show I have seen last year was Adam Dant at The Hales Gallery in London. It was a show of large, complex drawings which I thought were visionary in their composition and execution. Adam Dant has been around for a while and has a really interesting, funny and engaging drawing style.

Other good stuff I have seen in 07 either old or new has been Matt Furie’s work, a book of fantastical architecture by the Russian engravers Brodsky & Utkin, Brian Chippendale’s Ninja book and James Jarvis’ Yod.

Will Sweeney

Alakazam

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