UCCA Exhibition - Hans van Dijk: 5000 Names

Hans van Dijk: 5000 Names

Dutch-born, Beijing-based curator, scholar, and dealer Hans van Dijk was a foundational influence on contemporary art in China, from his arrival in Nanjing in 1986 through his death in 2002. His myriad contributions include the New Amsterdam Art Consultancy, which connected Chinese artists with collectors and curators abroad; the China Art Archives and Warehouse, an experimental gallery and exhibition space; and the seminal 1993 exhibition “China Avant-Garde,” the first show of Chinese contemporary art in Europe.

Based on extensive interviews and archival research, “Hans van Dijk: 5000 Names” considers his legacy as it looks at the major artists he championed and the scene they inhabited during the 1990s. The exhibition comprises three main elements. A vast collection of documentary material, including catalogues, personal correspondence, and photographs, records in depth van Dijk’s life and work within an emergent art scene. Complementing these documents are works by Chinese artists—some now iconic, others nearly forgotten—with whom van Dijk worked closely. Van Dijk’s contribution to the introduction of photography as contemporary art into the Chinese conversation will also be treated in a special section curated by Zhang Li, and several historical works by figures including Li Yongbin and the New Analysts (Xin Kedu), originally included in van Dijk’s exhibitions, will be re-created. The final element is van Dijk’s life’s work: a meticulously organized, staggeringly comprehensive archive of over 5000 Chinese artists born between 1880 and 1980, documenting the history of the country’s modern and contemporary art from the 1920s onward. Together, these documents and works offer an immersive look into the world of a critical figure whose legacy has only just begun to be unpacked, reopening not only the conversation surrounding van Dijk and his manifold contributions to Chinese contemporary art, but the history of the 1990s in Chinese art and culture more broadly.

This exhibition in two parts is curated by Marianne Brouwer and developed with Philip Tinari (Director, UCCA) and Defne Ayas (Director, Witte de With), together with Venus Lau (Curator, UCCA), Samuel Saelemakers (Associate Curator, Witte de With), and Ian Yang (Curatorial Fellow, Witte de With). Curatorial assistance was provided by Andreas Schmid and Zhang Li. The exhibition is co-commissioned by the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing (24 May – 10 August, 2014) and Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art, Rotterdam (4 September, 2014 – 4 January, 2015).

The UCCA presentation of “Hans van Dijk: 5000 Names” is sponsored by Dior and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Beijing. Research support for Marianne Brouwer was provided by the Mondriaan Fund.

“Hans van Dijk: 5000 Names” includes artworks by Ai Weiwei, Big Tail Elephant, Cang Xin, Chen Shaoxiong, Daylight Collective, Ding Yi, Duan Jianyu, Feng Mengbo, Thomas Fuesser, Geng Jianyi, Gu Dexin, Hai Bo, Han Lei, Hong Hao, Hong Lei, Li Yongbin, Lin Yilin, Liu Anping, Liu Ding, Luo Yongjin, Mai Zhixiong, Meng Huang, New Analysts, Qiu Zhijie, Shi Yong, Sun Kai, Wang Shilong, Wang Xingwei, Wang Yin, Wu Shanzhuan, Xu Hongmin, Xu Zhiwei, Yan Lei, Yu Youhan, Zhang Enli, Zhang Hai’er, Zhang Peili, Zhao Bandi, Zhao Shaoruo, Zheng Guogu, Zhou Tiehai, Zhu Fadong, and Zhuang Hui.

戴汉志：5000个名字

曾居于北京的荷兰籍策展人、学者和艺术经纪人戴汉志为奠定中国当代艺术发展的基石做出了重要贡献，他于1986年赴中国南京、后长居于北京，2002年去 世，为奠定中国当代艺术发展的基石做出了大量贡献。他所创立的新阿姆斯特丹艺术咨询公司(NAAC)为中国艺术家、国际艺术收藏家和策展人建立了沟通平 台；与人联合创立的中国艺术文件仓库(CAAW)则是国内最早的鼓励实验性艺术项目的空间之一；他在1993年策划的“中国前卫艺术展”更为影响深远，此 展览是中国当代艺术在欧洲的第一次展出。

“戴汉志：5000个名字”是致敬和纪念这位重要人士的一次文献展，铭刻他对中国艺术界的贡献和他于中国艺术家而言的特殊意义，遵循时间顺序展出大 量戴汉志的信函、文件、照片、曾编辑的书目、曾策划的展览，以及关于他的生平的详实资料。展览将在UCCA最大的展厅空间内呈现，作为文献及资料的补充， 本展亦包括部分中国艺术家的作品——其中有些人今天已成为中国当代艺术最具标志性的名字，还有一些则早已淡出这个领域——他们都曾在戴汉志生前与其交往和 密切合作。展览标题指向一个戴汉志生前未能完成的伟大项目，一部收录了5000个——几乎所有中国当代艺术家的名字和介绍的词典，现场包括绘画、摄影和一 些关键项目的原景重现，旨在通过讲述戴汉志的故事，再次回望上世纪90年代中国的艺术环境和那些被遗忘的片段。

展览由玛丽安娜·布劳沃策划，与UCCA馆长田霏宇和策展人刘秀仪、魏特德维茨当代艺术中心馆长德芙内·阿亚斯和策展人塞缪尔·萨勒梅克斯合作呈 现，施岸迪和张离(黎)提供策展支持。分为UCCA(北京，2014年5月24日至8月10日)和魏特德维茨当代艺术中心(鹿特丹，2014年9月4日至 2015年1月4日)两个现场。

UCCA展览“戴汉志：5000个名字”由迪奥和荷兰王国驻华大使馆赞助。策展人玛丽安娜·布劳沃的研究经费由蒙德瑞安基金(Mondriaan Fund)提供。

作品参展“戴汉志：5000个名字”的艺术家和小组包括艾未未、大尾象、苍鑫、陈劭雄、日光小组、丁乙、段建宇、冯梦波、托马斯·福瑟、顾德新、海 波、韩磊、洪浩、洪磊、李永斌、林一林、刘安平、刘鼎、罗永进、麦志雄、孟煌、新刻度、邱志杰、施勇、孙凯、王世龙、王兴伟、王音、吴山专、徐宏民、徐志 伟、颜磊、余友涵、张恩利、张海儿、张培力、赵半狄、赵少若、郑国谷、周铁海、朱发东和庄辉。