Red Gate Gallery - 20 years in Beijing

One place I take art-loving clients to is the Red Gate Gallery ('Hong Men' in pinyin), which celebrates its 20th birthday this year. Not only can you see the best in contemporary Chinese art, but the gallery itself is located in an unique historical Ming Dynasty building.

Furthermore, you could not have a friendlier curator than the Australian Brian Wallace, alumnus of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He is the gallery's founder and has been chosen in recent years by Time Out magazine as one of the top 40 heroes of Beijing.




  
 
 

The gallery is located in the Dongbianmen Watchtower, an impressive structure and one of the few remaining parts of the old 30m-high Ming dynasty city wall (park adjacent). It is at the south east corner of the second ring road, and is easily accessible by subway, in contrast to other sites such as 798 Art Zone (see blog of May 20th, 2011) and Caochangdi.


The Watchtower is a fine example of traditional Chinese architecture, and is almost 600 yrs old. It was started in 1436 and finished 4 yrs later. 

Apart from art exhibitions, two floors are devoted to some interesting artefacts, models and historic photos about the local district.

The current exhibition is called  '20 Years - Two Generations of Artists', and here are some pictures taken from the Red Gate gallery website http://www.redgategallery.com/

Zen Quote - Amitabha

No and Keng
Survivor
Food
Oil on Canvas
Watching the Battlescene
Not a Tree but Not Not a Tree

If you are a budding artist, you could also consider applying for the gallery's residency program which provides artists, curators, writers, and academics with the opportunity to live and create work in China.
The objective is to provide facilities for artists to easily start their projects and offer a community in which they can participate as much as they like. Red Gate assists all participants to connect with the art scene, meet local Chinese artists and to source art materials. They help get you settled, show you around, tell you where to buy the best Peking Duck, which part of the Great Wall not to go to (hey, they're beginning to sound like competitiors of ChinaMango!), and where and when the latest openings are.

Thankfully not all of you are artists and would be quite happy just to visit the 'must-see' sights of Beijing, as well as other places of interest that have been described in this blog over the past couple of years.  Do get in touch if you need any help.

Capital location - Capital M restaurant

One of my favourite clients always takes me to dinner when in Beijing, he's so kind! If I were to choose, I would look for a small noisy dumpling or noodle place where the locals eat. However, this time it was his choice, and he chose Capital M which has been running successfully for sometime now.

As it says in their website, "Capital M offers diners an unforgettable combination of delicious, simply good food that is a collection of classics and nostalgic favourites; an iconic view of Beijing; a stunning ambience and warm service. Located on what has been Beijing's most celebrated shopping street for over 600 years - Qianmen Street -- Capital M is perfectly positioned for a breathtaking view of the city's heart. Whether from our terrace or our gorgeous interior, diners enjoy a view that unfolds from the Forbidden City to Qianmen Gate, including Tian'anmen Square."

            Just south of Tiananmen

Square, approaching

Qianmen St.

View towards Tiananmen Square, with old City Wall watchtowers and Mao mausoleum at the back

Once inside, it's a different world!

Here I am on the terrace enjoying the view.

The inside decor is definitely not Chinese!

Some idea of the food. Chinese is always my favourite but you may not agree.

Looking over the terrace onto QianMen St, you can see the original Quan Ju De Roast Beijing Duck shop, one of the time-honoured brands of China.

And another well-known brand....well not quite, only in China! 

So, I can take you to Capital M next time if you want some fine dining, a great Sunday brunch, a romantic drink at dusk, or take part in other social events such as Sunday afternoon teatime music recitals and literary festival.

I'm off to Europe for a month so please be a little patient before I write the next blog. Happy holidays to you all!

798 Art Zone - relax without any temples or palaces.

In a previous blog I mentioned the 798 Art Zone (Dashanzi area). This area, full of converted workshops and military factory buildings from the 1950s, is a mix of Greenwich Village, SoHo and Covent Garden. It was built with Russian help when they were bosom buddies with China in the 1950s, with a touch of East German influence. As the factories closed, so the young artistic community found and built a new home starting around 15 years ago. Gradually designers, photographers and galleries moved in, and the increasing number of tourists brought in trendy bookshops, cafes and restaurants.

As real estate prices in the area rose, the Art Zone was almost closed down a few years ago, but lobbying by prominent figures in the art world has saved the area, making it a 'hip' place to stroll around in alone or with the family. I took some pictures during one short visit recently.

meet all sorts of people!

all done with mirrors

Plenty of places to sit down and have a cup of tea 

yes, that is a dinosaur's tail!



"Reincarnation" by 1970s artist - political themes are less common with these artists, who are more interested in the rapid changes in modern Chinese society.

Dinosaurs in the street as well - but safely caged

This last picture says "Missing You", exactly what I wanted to say to you all!

You will be sure to find something of interest in 798 among all the shops and galleries that thrive in the area. You can even stay in an up-market hotel or eat in my favourite Chinese restaurant in the area just by the north gate. Or just take a break in one of the coffee shops. I can take you there, and also the nearby ceramics shop I talked about in the March 13th blog. Or to the nearby China Railway Museum or another new art area called Caochangdi...oh so much to see in Beijing and so little time!

Another Feast for the Eyes - architecture and art exhibits

After last month's 'china' feast, and food feast the month before, this blog features another kind of East-West fusion, that of architecture and the arts in a modern luxury boutique hotel. I don't have shares in this company but some of my clients go there, and I love going there just to look around!

It doesn't look promising from the rather grey-green box-like exterior, but it opens up into a box full of surprises........ starting from a smiling doorman in front of 2 traditional wooden doors, a beautiful fusion of young and old.

A fine pair of exhibits, 'coat of arms' in Ming style china, greets you, with male in front of the female in good traditional fashion.

And then a wall of boxes, which actually is a representation of a Chinese medicine chest. This serves as the 'reception desk' for check in.

In case you haven't guessed already, yes we're in one of the top hotels in Beijing, the Opposite House (boutique luxury) hotel, where some of my clients stay, eat, drink or just stroll around. It has a striking minimalist style, and the architect was Kengo Kuma. It's situated right in the middle of Sanlitun Village, the latest 'hip' place where the trendy go to be seen.

There are numerous art exhibits which change from time to time, some light as a feather.

...others more life-like...

.....fancy an empress's embroidered dress?

......another feature is a huge stainless steel swimming pool open for all to look down on.

And even a modern dinosaur to greet you at the coffee shop, rather reminiscent of some you can see at 798 Art Zone - now that's a blog for another time.