2012 White Box Art & DesignBack

Press Release

White Box Art & Design

“White Box Art & Design” is the brand of creative arts built by White Box Museum of Art. Nowadays, Chinese arts and creative industry is still growing. The White Box is trying to explore a new, effective way which could realize commercial value in the field of creative arts, building a more open channel for contemporary art and the public. “Art alter life” is always adhere to the concept of White Box Museum of Art. Now people in the society pay more attention to their freedom of thoughts and expressions, and art can undoubtedly provide more possibilities, more vivid experience and better hopes.

The “White Box” is authorized to develop art products for the National Art Museum of
China, Shanghai Art Museum, The Palace Museum, and Art Museum of Beijing Fine Art Academy, which established a strong background for the art products we developed, while at the same time, push the “White Box Art & Design” into a more mature process, with variety of art resources. In another hand, we also offer our “gift designing” services to private banks, real estate industry and many business groups. “White Box Art & Design” brand operation has two important aspects, one is creative center for design and copyright development, the other is art store chain for sales experience as the goal.

White Box Creative Center

White Box Creative Center has an excellent design team, who are responsible for the copyright cooperation, product development and art derivatives development. We are trying to provide perfect limited art works, with a selection of participating artists, design and make, and selection of corresponding materials, technology and packaging. Our team is committed to effectively integrate resources of White Box Museum of Art and explore better commercial value. The “White box" will introduce 100 pieces of carefully selected limited art works each year called “contemporary art design 100 ", including prints, sculpture, video, art glass, tea, lacquer ware, clothing, jewelry, furniture, lamps, creative gifts, which is the quality guarantee for limited art works.

White Box Art & Design Shop

White Box Art & Design Shop has abundant products including limited art works, art derivatives, design products and art books, which shows the White Box’s pursuit of high quality. Independent design, cooperative copyright, quality limited art, is the representative of our products. At the same time, we are looking for “smart, funny, innovative" design from all over the world. We selected professional books which could manifest the international art and design development, especially for the most excellent books we sale and published the entire world. We are trying to provide customers high-quality multidimensional art experience. Chain store has the most intuitive experience for product consumption and brand image. 798 store 

emphasizes academic atmosphere, where audience could feel the creative power of designer and young artists.

“White Box Art & Design” band is committed to spread further through different carriers, in different ways and for different audiences. We need more creative power if we want to take the truly contemporary art and design into daily life and make everything more beautiful. Richard Dlorida said in the book The Rise of The Creative Class that creative industries, including Science and engineering, architecture and design, education, art and music, create the value of $22 billion for the world every day, which grows 24 times faster than traditional industries. And it is 7% of GDP in The United States and 8% of GDP in the UK. “White Box Art & Design” wants to explore contemporary art and design’s commercial values and spiritual strength, bring an art experience far beyond the “pure purchase” for the public.

ARTISTS: 
Chen Wenling, Chen Xi, Cui Guotai, Dai Liang, Dai Shufeng, Fang Zhenpeng, Feng Lianghong, Gao Xiaowu, Hou Wen, Jiang Shouxiang, Jutta Bobbe, Li Di, Li Bingru, Li Jiangshen, Liu Xiufang, Liu Chang, Liu Ye, Liu Yi, Lu Zhengyuan, Ma Ying, Ma Yuejun, Masayuki Kurokawa, Outi Turpeinen, Renata Jakowleff, Riikka Latva, Shi Xinning, Shigeru Moroizumi, Song Tao, Steven Weinberg, Sun Ou, Timo Sarpaneva, Wang Kaifang, Wang Yun, Wu Yongping, Xu Rui, Yang Shuo, Yuan Shun, Zhang Fan, Zhang Xiaotao, Zhao Guanghui, Zhao Long, Zhong Sheng, Zhou Wendou 

CURATOR: Fang Zhenning
GENERAL PLANNER: Sun Yongzeng
EXHIBITION DIRECTOR: Wu Ling
EXHIBTION ASSISTANT: Xie Jinyuan
PROJECT COOPERATION: Liu Chenya, Liu Xuemei, Li Xue

SPONSOR: WHITE BOX MUSEUM OF ART
OPENING: Sunday, December 9, 2012, 4p.m.
DATES: December 9, 2012-January 9, 2013
MUSEUM OPENING HOURS: 10:00-17:30, Tuesday-Sunday
VENUE: WHITE BOX MUSEUM OF ART
               B07, 798 Art District, No.2 Jiu Xianqiao Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, China, 100015
CONTACT US: +86-10-59784800
WEB: www.798whitebox.com

Curator Article

Search for Shellfish
Fang Zhenning

We often put two words, art and design together, which means that there’s some kind of relationship between them, but they can not replace each other. So where is the difference between art and design?
Design is usually for a particular service object, and a good design must have good function. Although in some occasion, a special aesthetic value design looks like an art piece, it is still classified in the design category. It is because the motivation of is for a particular object and human services. This is a high level comparison to judge art and design.

My definition for a great design is: look good with great use. 

It looks like it is not that difficult to design. But we often confused by some modern design in the market which looks very good,  I say ‘confused’ means that you are attracted by the charm from its appearance, but it is difficult to use after you get it, especially for some modern products designed by crossover designer. It is hard to say the products could be durable and popular if it has not been inspected by users and design critics. This is the most difficult part of design.

So what about art? The real art production’s motivation is pure and it is an expression of individual’s feelings and unique cognitive of the world. Art creation does not specifically consider about function. If we don’t concerned raising aesthetic, art is actually does not consider any function, that means it is not its purpose to use.
 
And the derivatives of art are the limited commodity after artist's authorization. The so-called limited, is to prevent it to be mass produced and spread, keeping art unique dignity and meet the needs of most customers on the same artwork. This is undoubtedly an economic and careful way to popularize art. So Marcel Duchamp (Marcel Duchamp, 1887--1968), who influenced the art direction since the last century, was the first one who produced “limited edition”. Then it became popular in the world’s art market and has become a new system for the modern art popularization.

In China, art and design was put together in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Items played by the emperor were all came from the folk’s wisdom and creativities. Regardless of creativity and craftwork, they have reached a high degree of perfection. I think that is the seamless link era of art and design.
 
Modern design in China started late, though there were many insiders making great efforts to the Chinese design, the situation had not become any better. The reason is that Chinese 

contemporary design does not have the overall environment, that is to say, we are not surrounded by good design. So it is like we are searching for shellfish in a desert, any good art and design would become attractive activities.

The 100 election of contemporary art and design picked competitive works out of mixed environment, and put them into a carefully designed exhibition space, which would show the special quality of them.

The design involves all aspects of daily life, some of the small one could be player in hand, and some of them could be used in normal life. Design appears everywhere in life, and it is a great time in Beijing when art and design put together.

This is the first exhibition for “art and design 100”, and it would become annual in future. We pick 100 art and design works out to the audience in the world every year and it would become more and more important. The ‘shellfish’ we are looking for would become an aesthetic standard, and the aesthetic gene would be inherited after countless selection.

2012.11.23北京
23rd of Sep.2012 Beijing