News & Events
Fired Earth from China’s Golden Age: Ceramics of the Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty is considered by historians to be a high point in Chinese civilisation, able to reach far and wide with use of the Grand Canal of China, the Silk Road and maritime routes. In this way the Tang were influenced by new technologies and cultures from the Middle East, India, Persia and Central Asia and beyond. The Ceramics produced during this time, often considered China's "Golden Age" are among the most innovative produced in China, showing both Chinese aesthetics as well as influences from as far away as Greece. Museum of East Asian Art, Bath.
The Praying Mantis Kung
The Praying Mantis Kung Fu School demonstrate the most ancient form of Kung Fu, based on the principle moves of the Praying Mantis. The tradition states that the Chow Gar founder Chow Ah-Nam created his style after witnessing a praying mantis fight and defeat a bird. 15 mantis practitioners demonstrate, followed by an on-site workshop with four senior experts and chosen audience participants. Southbank Centre
Beyond the Revolution and Reforms: the People's Republic of China at 60
2nd Conference of the International Forum for Contemporary Chinese Studies (IFCCS) Organised by School of Contemporary Chinese Studies (with its China Policy Institute and Nottingham Confucius Institute), University of Nottingham. Dr Bin WU
Andrew Lim
Andrew Lim devises and follows rules for the creation of structures that respond to the architecture and history of sites. He uses objects that have a historical connection to the site in which they are situated, such as objects from the building's former use or discarded elements found within the building. Lim uses mass produced materials to make sculptural installations by devising a set of rules for their construction, and following these rules to their natural conclusion. This is usually when the structural integrity of the form would be compromised and the form would collapse with another iteration of the rule, or when the physical constraints of the site stops the form from being able to grow further. The devising of the rules for growth means that the final form of the structure is determined by itself, giving the work an experimental edge.. Chinese Arts Centre, Market Buildings, Thomas Street, Manchester M4 1EU
Birdhead: Song Tao & Ji Weiyu
This is the first UK solo exhibition of Shanghai based Ji Weiyu and Song Tao who collaborate under the name of Birdhead. Their youthful and rebellious spirit, the savvy way in they operate and their highly collaborative approach have made them a respected presence in the Shanghai arts scene. The two artists grew up in Shanghai in the 1980s when mass urbanisation began in China. The frenetic pace of change in the city, one which leaves no time for questions or hesitation, is conveyed by the spontaneous and accumulative aesthetic of their work. Working in photography and video, with a highly improvised and self-contained approach, Birdhead take snapshots of their everyday lives and their surroundings. Their subjective and un-retouched take on urban reality captures not only a local cultural identity, from a native inhabitant's point of view, but also invokes the physical experience of being in Shanghai, the relationship between the body and the city. Ji Weiyu and Song Tao were born and live in Shanghai. Recent exhibitions include China Power Station II, Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art, Oslo, Norway, Birdhead Photography Show 2006-2007, BizArt, Shanghai, China and Individual Position II, ShangART, Shanghai, China. . Chinese Arts Centre, Market Buildings, Thomas Street, Manchester M4 1EU Contact: Ying Kwok Tel: 0161 832-7271 Email: info@chinese-arts.centre.org.
Moving between materials, Jessica Tsang has made works that combine sculptural forms and the painted surface. Jessica's work focuses on the dynamic between the painted image, and the qualities of the physical structure this representational surface occupies. This dialogue formulates itself as objects consisting of a painted 3D surface, and an accompanying wooden structure where the work explores the boundaries between 2D and 3D work. Jessica is attempting to take into consideration the overall aesthetic qualities of the work by introducing new materials that push the overall aesthetic in new directions. Through her residency at the European Centre of Ceramics she has been able to experiment with new materials and her experiences with ceramics will impact upon her residency at Chinese Arts Centre.. Chinese Arts Centre, Market Buildings, Thomas Street, Manchester M4 1EU Contact: Ying Kwok Tel: 0161 832-7271 Email: info@chinese-arts.centre.org.
Beijing to Lhasa
Angela Petrie and Stephen Craig will talk about the first leg of this summer's trip to Tibet and Sichuan, taking in Beijing, the trip from Beijing to Lhasa and Lhasa itself.. Garnethill Multicultural Centre, 21 Rose St, Glasgow G3 6RE Contact: Scotland China Association
Painting Workshop
Painting weekend with Maggie Cross. Pool-in-Wharfedale Memorial Village Hall, Pool-in-Wharfedale, Yorkshire. LS211LG
Opera, Face-painting and Paper Cutting
Workshops for adults and children. Fairfields Arts Centre, Council Road, Basingstoke, RG21 3DH. Tel: 01256 321621
Asian Art in London
Range of exhibitions in galleries in London
The Bureaucracy of Death
Michel Lee leads this talk and tour around the Museum with a focus on death, the afterlife and the spirit world in traditional Chinese culture. Michel Lee has been Curator of the Museum of East Asian Art since 2007, and previously worked at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. as Project Director of the Asian Cultural History Programme.. Museum of East Asian Art, 12 Bennett Street, Bath. BA1 2QJ Tel: 01225 464640 Email: info@meaa.org.uk.
Boom
Singapore 2008. With the economy booming and the demand for land intense, the young, the old—and the dead—are forced to jostle for a home to call their own. A charmingly off-beat and very funny exploration of what makes us so attached to a home once we've made the perfect one. Boom was first developed as part of the Royal Court Theatre's International Residency in 2007. Yellow Theatre tour at various locations. Live Theatre, Broad Chare, Quayside, Nwecastle.NE1 3DQ. Tel: 0191 232 1232
Towards Understanding Kunqu Opera
Talk-demonstration and workshop presented by Kathy Hall and musicians (tbc). SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG
