Asymmetry Director on the Sinophone as a Method for Art

Michèle Ruo Yi Landolt, director of Asymmetry, discusses the organization's mission and the concept of the Sinophone as a method for understanding art's movement across cultures. Founded during the pandemic in 2020, Asymmetry emerged when borders closed and mobility stalled, prompting a focus on maintaining connections among dispersed Chinese-inflected communities. Landolt, who became director in 2023, leads strategy, programming, and partnerships from East London. The Sinophone, shaped by thinkers like Shu-mei Shih and David Der-wei Wang, is framed not as a fixed identity but as a way to read how art moves and mutates across contexts. Asymmetry supports grassroots infrastructures such as Sine Screen, 3standardstoppage, Bungee Space, POSTPOST Space, and Accent Sisters, which foster circulation of ideas. Artists like Shen Xin, Ho Tzu Nyen, Stella Zhong, Trevor Yeung, Peng Zuqiang, and Cici Wu exemplify practices that navigate languages, memories, and technologies without categorical enclosure. ArtReview is partnering with Asymmetry for a series of cultural reflections.