randian | 燃点

2014.10.27 – 2015.1.16Opening: Sunday, Oct. 26, 18:30

Red Brick Art Museum, Beijing

u-topophilia intends to propose a narrative strategy regarding place, architecture, utopia and social movements, and also the possibilities of connecting in societal space. The concept Utopia reflects people’s dis-satisfaction with reality and their hope, so do architecture and art. “U” in “Utopia” comes from the Greek word “ou-topos” which means “no place”, similar to the English word “a-topia”. “U” here can also be interpreted as “eu-topos”, meaning joy and happiness. The word “Topophilia”, on the other hand, means love of place. The Chinese-U.S. Geographer Yi-Fu Tuan once wrote a book on “Topophilia”, examining the affective bond between people and place, and how it contributes to the formulation of identity. Here the new word “u-topophilia” refers to the conflicts between love of no place and love of place. Such conflicts may lead to new possibilities: by recognizing and acknowledging differences among people and places, we may shift from Jus soli, identity associate with place to socially engaged art practices that do not bond love with a particular place, which may be one way of mediating the social contradictions caused by new liberalism. And this is also the core of Prof. Huang Sunquan’s thoughts and curatorial practices.

This exhibition also marks the beginning of Local Narration and Societal Space, an 2-3 year project initiated by Huang Sunquan and co-organized by renowned curator Guo Xiaoyan and the curatorial team of Red Brick Art Museum. This project focuses on the methodology of artists/ activists engaging in the production of space. It is not just another art exhibition but rather is a research-driven artistic project t within conditional societal space. It will invite international academics, artists and activists that are involved in space of production, re-construction of the local, community participation and socially engaged art together for emerging an experimental future.

Red Brick Art Museum

Red Brick Art Museum is located in No.1 International Art District in the northeast of Beijing. As the landmark of this region, the facilities of Red Brick cover a total area of 20,000 square meters, with nearly 10,000 square meters exhibition space. Red Brick Art Museum was founded by the couple YAN Shijie and CAO Mei. The Museum officially opened on May 23rd, 2014. The architectural design of the museum was conducted in person by Professor DONG Yugan of Architecture Research Center of Peking University. Employing red bricks as the basic architectural element, Professor Dong maintained the integrity of each brick, created a suburban-based, garden-owning contemporary art museum.

The main building of Red Brick Art Museum includes two full storeys on the ground and a projection room in the basement floor, of which the aboveground part provides with nine exhibition spaces, two public recreational spaces, one lecture hall, one art derivatives space, along with dining room, cafe, club,etc. As part of art museum visiting experience and the extension of the building structure, the landscape courtyard which was designed and built in a way deriving from the Chinese Garden scenic conception is also a highlight feature of Red Brick.

In the future, through a series of orderly and high-quality exhibitions along with collections, research, education, publications and public activities, Red Brick Art Museum will dedicate to boost the development of Chinese contemporary art, to participate in the international contemporary artists’ programs communication, and to carry out research about distinctive problems and phenomenon in academic field, offering a feasible reference for the operation and development mode for private museums of Chineses Contemporary Art.