Hunsand Space Opens Gallery in Restored Hebei Chapel with Inaugural Exhibition
Hunsand Space has opened a commercial gallery within a renovated Catholic chapel located in Beizhangcheng village, Jingxing County, Hebei Province. The first exhibition, titled The Opening Exhibition, showcases artworks by Hidetaka Suzuki and others, including paintings and sculptures depicting witches, bestiaries, underground raves, fetishistic leather items, and crucifixes. The structure incorporates traditional blue clay bricks and wooden beams, harmonizing with the local architectural style. Interest from local residents is minimal, with most visitors being either familiar with Hunsand Space's former site or tourists. Constructed around 1920, the chapel has had various uses prior to its restoration. Jingxing County has a notable Catholic history, with 673 Catholics recorded in 1930. Hunsand Space struggles to attract audiences outside urban areas.
Key facts
- Hunsand Space opened a gallery in a restored Catholic chapel in Beizhangcheng, Jingxing County, Hebei Province.
- The inaugural exhibition is titled The Opening Exhibition and includes works by Hidetaka Suzuki and other artists.
- The chapel was built around 1920 and later used as a school and storage space before restoration.
- Local residents show minimal interest in the gallery, with most visitors from Shijiazhuang or tourists.
- Jingxing County had 673 Catholics in 1930, part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Zhengding.
- The region experienced a famine in 1920, with missionaries providing disaster relief that influenced conversions.
- Artists Zuo Jing and Mia Yu have worked on rural artistic interventions in China to engage local communities.
- The gallery's founder reflects on the challenge of connecting art with the village's natural environment.
Entities
Artists
- Hidetaka Suzuki
- Zuo Jing
- Mia Yu
- Mao Zedong
- Yongzheng
Institutions
- Hunsand Space
- The Bishan Project
- UCCA Dune
- Aranya Art Center
- Catholic Church
- Protestant churches
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Zhengding
- Qing dynasty
- Republic of China
- ArtReview
Locations
- Beizhangcheng
- Jingxing County
- Hebei Province
- Shijiazhuang
- China
- Beijing
- Taihang Mountains
- Zhengding
- Anhui
- Fushun
- France
- England