With summer’s passing, tis the season to harvest all things intriguing as China’s autumn art fairs shift into full gear. Right on the heels of ArtBeijing, Shanghai’s premier modern art show, SHContemporary, kicks off on September 10. The show, which runs until the 13th, will feature 150 invited galleries from around the world.
However, patrons of the arts will not be privy to a certain “moving” installation as it appears to have gotten under the skin, so to speak, of the event’s organizers. Wim Delvoye’s tattooed pigs have been deemed, apparently, porcus non grata. What, might one ask, has the Belgian born artist done to raise the ire of SHContemporary? Who can say as speculation runs rampant as to why the pigs, which feature Louis Vuitton logos, Walt Disney characters as well as other motifs, are no longer welcome. Not only has SHContemporary’s spokeman, Gu Zihua, refused comment, but also the Xin Beijing Gallery, which represents Delvoye’s works in China, has not stated whether they believe the ban was imposed by the government. The only thing the Xin Beijing Gallery would comment on is their plan to collect the 18,000 RMB in costs incurred from their participation in SHContemporary.
Maybe the ban has nothing to do with sinister motives so much as it has something to do with an entirely mundane reason. As the saying goes, “it’s the economy, stupid.” According to Bloomberg, “price gains in works by Liu Xiaodong and other Chinese contemporary artists have slowed and auction sales have shrunk as a drop in China’s equities erased $2.3 trillion in market value this year.” Hmm, but are pigs really so expensive that they warrant a ban? I guess their rider must have been great enough to rival even the most maniacal diva, J.Lo.
Image: Art Net
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