CHINA Plans for The Yellow River Arts Centre, a RMB1.76billion (US$279million) new arts centre being developed in northwest China, were announced last week, marking a significant step in revitalising the heritage of the area.
The facility is located along the banks of the Yellow River, within Yinchuan, a culture-rich city situated on the northern route of the historic Silk Road. The centre will open in 2014 and will serve as a meeting place for local and international audiences and arts communities to participate in the production, exhibition, discussion and research of contemporary culture in all its forms.
The Yellow River Arts Centre will include the Yinchuan Art Museum, 15,000sqm museum that focuses on contemporary art and art history. The special highlight in the museum’s collection will be late Qing period oil paintings. The collection is of international significance for the study of transnational art and illustrates cultural exchange between east and west and the development of Chinese oil painting. Curated by renowned Chinese art critic Professor Lv Peng, the exhibition will showcase 200 paintings alongside commissioned work by artists from all around the world to put art in perspective and promote more critical discussion between various art communities.
The layout will include 3 floors of exhibition space and education spaces including classrooms, a library-café and a lecture theatre and the museum will officially open as early as 2014. Although the museum's policy on group bookings and corporate visits are not fully developed, it is planning to cater to and encourage these large-scale visits.
A number of additional locations will also follow the Yinchuan Art Museum: the Sculpture Grounds, an outdoor area that will specialize in displays of commissioned sculptures from all around the world, the Art History Park, which will have an extensive presentation of the history of art in China with works that date back to 2,000 years, and the Artists Village, a unique residency programme for visiting artists, curators and art institutions.
“The Yellow River Arts Centre is an ambitious cultural organisation of global significance and strong local foundations. It will provide a dynamic cultural hub for the city and Ningxia and a place of culture, education, research and leisure to improve the well-being of residents of the city and Northwest China at large,” said Liu Wenjin, founder and chairperson of the Yellow River Arts Centre.
Randall Sim
