Shanghai's November 2017 Art Scene Features Anniversary Shows, Political Pop, and Cross-Border Dialogues

Multiple exhibitions opened across Shanghai in November 2017, showcasing diverse contemporary art practices. Don Gallery marked its 10th anniversary with 'Shanghai Dandy,' a group exhibition featuring 12 artists including Zhang Ruyi with concrete cacti and Lu Song with a painting of a secluded pond. The gallery described the show as a 'mega-metaphor' exploring a persona navigating the art world. Nearby, Yuz Museum launched 'Shanghai Galaxy II,' curated by Wu Hung, presenting works from 22 Shanghai-focused artists like Ming Wong, Liu Jianhua, Birdhead, Michael Lin, Wang Xin, and Yu Youhan across various media from 2016-2017. Yu Youhan also had a solo exhibition, 'The Representational and The Abstract,' at ShanghART, displaying recent paintings, early works, and watercolors that blend political pop with abstract landscapes and Expressionism. Chen Zhe's 'Flown Away Is The Gold of Days' at BANK, closing 20 November, presented chapters from her ongoing 'Towards Evening' project through photography, video, installation, and text works exploring dusk. At Capsule, the group show 'Scraggly Beard Grandpa,' curated by Cici Wu and Wang Xu of PRACTICE collective, featured 12 artists examining cross-border communication, including João Vasco Paiva's 'The Last Kauai Oo Bird I & II' with lava stone Nike trainers and 1930s bird calls. a.f.art theatreFangling's video in 'Shanghai Dandy' coincided with their participation in ArtReview Asia Xiàn Chǎng at West Bund Art & Design.