2006 CCAA Report
Pi Li
2006 CCAA Director
Looking at the rapid progression of change in Chinese contemporary art and selecting the most outstanding artists is an arduous task. The fundamental goal of the Chinese Contemporary Art Awards (CCAA) is not completely determined by different perspectives on art in order to create value judgments, but it is a platform for understanding artists and their works so that people may participate this ongoing dialogue. The jury committee in China engages in a discussion with jury members abroad, as well as artists and curators, to provide an effective channel to understanding Chinese contemporary art. When the CCAA was founded in 1998, contemporary art exhibitions and accompanying publications were not as common, but it was in this way that international viewers were exposed to an understanding of Chinese art. The development of contemporary art in China transformed dramatically after 2000, especially in an international scope, as the Chinese contemporary art market witnessed an unusual boom that undoubtedly had a great effect on artistic production and development. The CCAA in recent years continuously reflects on its role, as well as its development strategy, in the context of the contemporary art scene and hopes to offer a reliable source of learning and perspective independent from the current market.
The CCAA2006 began seeking nominations in 2004. We invited young domestic curators, critics
and art space directors to come together and each nominates 25 artists. The nomination process followed two main criteria: one regarded the candidate’s successful scope of expansion and potential for future development, resulting in high standards of evaluation and comprehensive study; the other regarded the preliminary jury selection and recommendations for the candidate’s incorporation of information of local surroundings and conditions, thus enabling the final appraisal to consider the artist’s position on both a local and international level. I extend many thanks to Zhang Wei, Director of Vitamin Space in Guangzhou; Lu Jie, Director of the Long March Space in Beijing; Huang Du, Independent Curator; Gao Shimin, Lecturer at the China Academy of Fine Arts, and to Gu Zhenqing, Director and Chief Curator of the Shanghai Zhu Qizhen Art Museum. They all have provided significant contributions to the academic study and posterity of Chinese contemporary art.
CCAA2006 jury met May 15-16 in Beijing to determine the final selection. The formation of the Jury not only considered each member’s academic background, but also consider aspects of Chinese and overseas critics, artists and curators. According to the first round of nomination by the jury committee, we gathered nearly 100 pieces of candidate materials and evaluated 35 artists during the two day process. Like previous jury committees, the CCAA selection particularly emphasized the review of the previous two years of a candidate’s artistic production. The reason being that each annual selection would accurately reflect the state of current art exhibitions, and act as a reliable indication for future academic study. After reviewing all materials and having two rounds of discussion and votes, the jury unanimously selected Zheng Guogu as this year’s winner. Cao Fei was recognized as the Best Young Artist under the age of 35 and ten other artists were awarded honorable mention. Additionally, due to the combination of each jury member’s background and perspective, through discussions and research also resulted in presenting an honorary award to Huang Yongping as the CCAA2006 Contributing Artist.
The biggest difference for the CCAA2006 from previous years was the decision to hold an accompanying exhibition of the winners——twelve: Chinese Contemporary Art Awards 2006. We hope this exhibition will expand the understanding and connotations of Chinese contemporary art outside of this award and publication. Through selection and exhibition, award recipients have the opportunity to exhibit outside of commercial galleries and certain organizations whose demands may be difficult to fulfill. As a result, awarded artists have the chance to publicly share their works as a representation of the past two years of development in Chinese contemporary art. In this way our selections hope to extend the discussion and research among specialists and the general public. I especially thank Shen Qibin, Director of the Shanghai Zendai Museum of Modern Art and UBS for their generous support to realize this exhibition. As the CCAA2006 Director, I hope that this year’s development committee, publication, and exhibition will be a model for future years and will truly manifest the cultural function of this award.