To the casual observer or perhaps someone who hasn’t had an eye exam in a while, that phantasm of white may look like the humpback whale of automobiles, the Cadillac Escalade, being towed away for a parking violation. From this angle it may even seem as if the Hong Kong police had to call in a crane to help with removal of the gas guzzler, but, upon closer examination, that’s actually the Chanel Mobile Art Container being erected on top of the Star Ferry parking lot.

Hong Kong is a city that has an avaricious appetite for designer goods. Just to take a quick snapshot of the luxury brand industry, Hermes has seven stores here whereas other fashion forward counterparts like Paris and New York, excluding holdings at Charles De Gaulle and JFK airports, only have 4 and 2 stores respectively. If Oprah shopped here, she most definitely would have found an open Hermes store somewhere in the city as Hong Kong’s love for luxe runs deep. As such, Karl Lagerfield’s vision of Chanel could not have picked a better first stop on its two-year world tour. The exhibition will be open to the public starting February 27 and will run until April 5. Curated by Fabrice Bousteau and housed in a collapsible museum designed by Zaha Hadid, the Chanel Mobile Art Container brings together 20 artists from all corners of the world who re-interpret le grande dame’s signature quilt bag first introduced in 1955. Some artists included on this list of the chosen few are Sophie Calle, Michael Lin, Sylvie Fleury, Blue Noses and Yoko Ono. Yes, that Yoko. I’ll leave the cheap shots out for now. To help spur their creativity, the artists were given a tour of Coco Chanel’s Paris apartment, rue Cambon, and were privy to study the environment of the studio in Vernil where the bags were handmade. This interesting endeavor is but one of the fruits of Uncle Karl’s tenure as creative director for Chanel. According to he of the ponytail, “We could have inundated the world with ads, but it is a more noble project.” Oh, Uncle Karl, how right you are.

Image: Thanks, Pitfield.

This column serves not only as a tribute to a great man with a great name, but it captures all those moments in China that make you stop for a second and do a double take. We have transmogrified “Oh snap!” to bring you “Bo Zaaaang!”

Just four short months after The China Arts Page first reported the opening of the Ullens Art Center in Beijing, there has been a shake-up at the center with ramifications that could be worse than Paris Hilton’s new film, The Hottie and the Nottie. According to the The Art Newspaper, “Guy Ullens, the Belgian foodstuffs baron who has entirely funded UCCA, said that Jérôme Sans had been selected as the new director and that an announcement would be made as soon as the appropriate Chinese authorities had approved the appointment.”

As such, the center’s current director, Fei Dawei, will be relegated to a more operational and research based role. Rumor has it that “Mr Dawei’s disagreements with his colleagues are believed to be behind his change in role.” Officially, of course, everything is still copasetic, and the impetus for change is said to be part of the institution’s natural evolution as Fei Dawei “was only ever to be instrumental in setting up the centre as a museum.” Fei Dawei, originally from Shanghai, has been an apostle of contemporary Chinese art. In a career spanning over 20 years, Mr. Dawei has received numerous accolades for his role in underscoring the importance of Chinese contemporary art as well as fine art in general. Not only has he served as a jury member for UNESCO’s Art Awards, but the French Ministry of Culture also bestowed him with the Medal of Knighthood for Literature and Art in 1999.

Fei Dawei’s first and last act as creative director of the Ullens center was the ’85 New Wave exhibition which served as a springboard for the new institution as it, according to China Radio International, represented, “the liveliest part of the entire intellectual liberation movement of the 1980s” and “it marked the end of a realistic era that had dominated art in China since the early 20th century. After 1985, contemporary art became the driving force behind the art scene.” With Fei Dawei’s ousting,  the Ullens Art Center lacks senior Chinese members of staff; what do you guys think about this turn of events? Is this move detrimental to the Beijing art scene or will it be business as usual?

Image: A Book From the Sky by Xu Bing

           With Old Man Winter still holding some provinces under duress, Beijing is trying to alleviate the pain with a little chicken soup for the soul. Although real food and heat would probably be more appreciated, the central government has opted to nourish the more ethereal qualities of its citizens by sending art troupes to the provinces that have been hardest hit by the snowstorms. According to Huang Zhenchun, Director of the General Office of the Ministry of Culture, “three troupes would stage 10 performances in Anhui, Jiangxi, Hunan and Hubei Provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from Feb. 17 to Feb. 20.” In addition to the performances, there will also be an exhibition of about 169 works all donated by various artists and institutions across the country. According to the ministry, all this is being done to spur on reconstruction and to “showcase the entire country’s determination in our fight against the snow storms, and inspire more people to join the fight.” Havoc from the snowstorms has already cost $15.4 billion U.S. dollars in damage with, sadly, 107 lives lost. Although there is a “We Are the World” style video(much to my chagrin, no one is sporting a jheri curl a la ’80s Michael) broadcasting itself on the airwaves, if you want to make a contribution to help the less fortunate, other than flipping the channel, please visit the Red Cross Society of China to make a donation: http://www.redcross.org.cn/english/index.htm

Image: Rediff

Fans of the mundane can rejoice, or sigh as is apropos, as a new solo photography exhibition by Guan Shi is coming to Shanghai’s Eastlink Gallery in March. This visual feast for the eyes aims to explore just what makes life so darn….um, banal. Featuring the artist’s full body of work, ranging from 1999’s Diary where he uses metaphor “to question the normative notions and fixed formats that make up our daily lives and hence question the often meaningless behaviour that controls it” to 2007’s Road which is part fiction and part reality as “a group of people stare out into the distance at some unravelled subject, on a road that is seemingly half way to construction”. If you want to join Guan Shi on a journey of the meaningless of it all, you have from March 13 – 31 to do so. After that, you’re on your own.

The address for the Eastlink Gallery can be found below:

5th Floor, Building 6, 50 Moganshan Road
Open Daily 10a.m-6p.m
地点：上海莫干山路50号6号楼5层
每日开放 10a.m-6p.m

Image: Pillar by Guan Shi

Wolverine Makes a New Ally

Joining the fight for mutant kind is Standard Chartered Bank. No, Professor X didn’t place Cerebro for safekeeping in the bank’s safety deposit. Hong Kong’s own Standard Chartered is bankrolling the latest spin-off from the X-Men franchise, Wolverine and the X-Men. The bank will foot the bill for the new 26-episode animated series, scheduled to air in July, with a multimillion dollar loan. That ought to help Wolverine and company stay in yards of spandex for this series and beyond.

Mobile Music Awards Crown Jay Chou

Finally, we know who to blame for that annoying sound emanating from cell phones at the office, in elevators, on the street, and just about everywhere you go. Sponsored by China Mobile, the Mobile Music Awards awarded Jay Chou with the distinction of four awards at this year’s ceremony, which took place at Shanghai’s Grand Stage. Chou won awards for “Best Selling Male Singer”, and his single, Rosemary, won “Best Selling Song”. Rounding out the other two categories, Chou won awards in the hideously translated category of “The Smash Hit Award On First Release” as well as sell out of the year for “Best Contribution to the Promotion of Mobile Phone Music”. Congratulations, Jay.

Tis the season: Beijing Pop Awards

Give us your tired, your poor, your hungry, but give them to us a little bit later as there are celebrities yonder! That’s right, with millions of people stuck in transit this past week as the snow punished the provinces, there was one source of comfort for all those huddled, tired masses: pop stars. Sponsored by Beijing Radio, the Beijing Pop Awards were held Wednesday night at the Olympic Sports Center. Think of the show as a cross between the People’s Choice and the Grammy’s as 10 of the 16 categories are judged by a panel of professionals while the remaining 6 are chosen by radio listeners. The big winner from the evening was old school rocker Zheng Jun who took home five awards. Also, in a nod to China’s political stratosphere, for every category, there is a mainland winner as well as a corresponding winner from either Hong Kong or Taiwan. Looks like the folks at Beijing Radio paid attention in kindergarten because, like teacher said, “sharing is caring”.

Image: Not Jay Chou

Come May, Christie’s will not only be requiring deep pockets but also pearls and smoky eye shadow at their Hong Kong venue as the world’s biggest art seller intends to debut its evening auctions in Asia. With sales at Christie’s Hong Kong having risen 23% last year, the initiation of the nighttime event is a natural extension of the company’s brand and serves to kick start their biannual sales for 2008. The twilight experience is also a nod to the growing sophistication and interest in the art from this region. According to Bloomberg, “in the larger art markets of London and New York, the more glamorous evening sale is seen as the industry’s barometer, drawing the pick of the offerings.” The belle of the ball on the block for May is predicted to be Mask Series 1996 No. 6 by Zeng Fanzhi. Zeng’s painting harkens back to the good old days of paranoia and tattle-telling as it depicts Mao’s favorite rabble rousers and is thought to be worth about HK $ 25 million. Now that’s more than enough reason to go tell on your momma.

Image: Mask Series 1996 No. 6

There used to be no question that Hong Kong was the cool S.A.R. Back in the day, violence from the triads in Macau spilled into the streets with such a frequent occurrence that it made Compton look like Pleasantville. Those days are now nothing but a distant memory as Macau is slowly stealing the limelight from its formerly union jacked cousin across the way. Apparently, a weekend in Macau no longer means hanging out in crowded rooms gambling with not only your money but also your health as the chips were as abundant as the second hand smoke. As revenue for Macau hit $10.4 billion USD last year, this city is now more Vegas than Vegas.

Stealing some of that Vegas glamour is the Venetian Macao which opened this past August. The mammoth of a complex, which has 3 canals complete with singing gondoliers, has already brought a host of events that provide a clear glimpse of the future of Macau. From World Championship Heavy Weight Fights to Beyonce’s bachannal booty shaking, the Venetian has another jewel in its crown as the place to make and spend your money: The Police. No, not the guys who have a penchant for batons and tight pants, but the guys who have a penchant for writing tunes like Don’t Stand so Close to Me and Roxanne. As part of their reunion tour, Sting and the two who didn’t work so hard post break-up will be playing one show only in China at the Venetian’s 15,000 seat capacity arena. So, old fans, you better blow the dust off those records and get ready to get your groove back, and, new fans, you better start downloading those mp3s as and, I quote, “ the British are coming, the British are coming”. Tickets for the February 7th concert can be purchased online from the Venetian Macao.

Image: Very 80’s

Beijing Finally Atones

Well it looks like the unofficial Hollywood blackout that started in December is over as Beijing has decided to let the cougar that is L.A. come back and play. Now that U.S.-Sino relations have simmered down to an almost loving lull, China is once again letting Hollywood corrupt its masses. The first movie to get its official censoring before its release is Atonement which is set to woo audiences on the mainland come February.

Still Okay to Speculate

For all those greedy opportunists out there, it’s time to rejoice. Apparently, it’s not too late to jump on the bandwagon and snap up contemporary Chinese art. According to lessons learned at Channel News Asia’s Investing in Chinese Art lecture, selling out is still a great thing as “it’s an indication of how marketable the work is. More speculators mean the work is acclaimed and endorsed by the market.” Phew. It’s time to pull your money out of the volatile stock market and into art because you know your baby mama needs yet another Gucci bag.

The Spy With My Face

A little known genre of Hong Kong cinema, Jane Bond, is resurfacing this month at the Hong Kong Film Archive just in time to coincide with the publication of Hong Kong Filmography Volume VI (1965-1969) and the Oral History Series: 1960s. These films, which were a spoof of the always popular James Bond films, feature powerful female leads who kick it Quentin Tarentino style. According to the HKFA, these films “came into being in the mid-1960s and was the amalgam of a diversity of historical and cultural factors: the Jade Girl tradition of Chinese cinema, the post-war youth culture, a rising feminist sensibility, trendy Western lifestyle and traditional Chinese values, to name a few.” The film festival starts January 26th, and tickets are available from www.urbtix.hk.

Image: Daily Mail

A new print ad for French automaker Citroen has been pulled from several Spanish newspapers amidst complaints from Chinese netizens over the artsy portrayal of Chairman Mao. As you can see in the image, Citroen modifies the famous likeness of Mao that looms over Tiananmen Square in Beijing, adding a scowl to his face, to demonstrate I guess how the former Chinese leader wouldn’t approve of a car as cool as the company’s new hatchback. The text under the image reads, “It’s true, we are leaders, but at Citroen the revolution never stops,” implying that the Citroen revolution (wasn’t aware there was one) has a broader cultural impact than the Cultural Revolution. And that the carmaker’s hatchback revolution will have longer legs that Mao’s own social/political/economic revolution. Hence, Mao’s displeasure. One outraged Chinese internet user wrote on Tianya.com, “As a Chinese, I felt greatly insulted when seeing this ad. It is not only insulting Chairman Mao, but the whole Chinese nation.” As the complaints piled up, like any of today’s spineless corporations, Citroen apologized to “all those hurt by the ad” and removed it from the Spanish media, including El Paiz.

This episode serves as a reminder to Spaniards who probably don’t give a rat’s ass about Citroen or Mao, Chinese who are still mesmerized by Mao’s significance and the rest of the international community that nationalism still trumps artistic expression in the Middle Kingdom. No matter how interesting an artistic rendering of Mao might me (and this one is certainly artistic), there are always going to be those who view political art less as a creative effort and more as a destructive effort. And where this happens is where creativity dies. But even more important, where does Citroen get off trying to fool us into thinking hatchbacks were ever the slightest bit cool?

Image: BBC News

This section will strive to bring you short sweet facts, digestible in 30 seconds, related to all forms of art, and fun to bring up in random conversations with strangers if you’re so inclined.

The city of Harbin is famous for its ice and snow art. Every year, since 1985, this former Russian enclave has put on an Ice Festival that could rival Walt Disney’s imagination in creating whole new worlds. This year frost-o-philes will find a little special something to stimulate both the eyes and ears as the International Snow-Sculpture Art Festival has created the world’s first fully playable ice piano. According to the Daily Times, the piano “can automatically play more than 30 classic piano pieces. And tourists can play the piano themselves.”

What do you guys think? Is this art or just something for the birds?

Image: Metro Daily