Canton Express and the Pearl River Delta

Image: Chen Shaoxiong, Figure Anti-Terrorism, 2003. Carved wooden chess pieces, furniture, two-channel video (colour, sound). Courtesy of M+, Hong Kong. Gift of Guan Yi, 2013.

In 2003, a group of artists and independent art organisations based in the Guangdong province of southern China collaborated on a project called Canton Express. Hou Hanru, a Paris-based Cantonese curator, commissioned it for Z.O.U. — Zone of Urgency, an exhibition at the 50th Venice Biennale.

Guangdong has a long history of being one of the most prosperous regions of China. Since the 1970s, the area (along with Hong Kong and Macau) has been known as the Pearl River Delta (PRD). There, the government implemented a series of experimental polices and economic models, such as designating Shenzhen and Zhuhai as Special Economic Regions. They also developed manufacturing industries in collaboration with entrepreneurs from Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Beginning in the late 1990s, the PRD rose to international prominence in the fields of contemporary architecture, urbanism, and art, propelled by Hou Hanru’s curatorial projects, Rem Koolhaas’ research and writing, and exhibitions initiated by new institutions from within the region, such as Guangdong Museum of Art and He Xiangning Museum.

This work on the Pearl River Delta delivers a more complex analysis of the region’s geopolitical context, subverting the dominant discourse of the nation state. As a case study, the PRD tells the story of hybridity: a culture deeply rooted in local history, shaped by frequent migration, and formed by the confluence of modern colonial and global influences. Artists responded to their marginal position within China and the world in an inspirational fashion.

These selected materials include articles and videos about the topic as well as publications relating to a series of relevant projects. Asia Art Archive is spotlighting these items in conjunction with the restaging of Canton Express at M+ Pavilion from 23 June to 10 September 2017. AAA participated in developing the research and archival components of that exhibition.

Image: Duan Jianyu, Artistic Chicken, 2003. Fiberglass, resin, acrylic paint, steel armature. Courtesy of M+, Hong Kong. Gift of Guan Yi, 2013.

改變之書，2002。

Book of Changes: Libreria Borges of Gwangju Biennale. Guangzhou, China: Libreria Borges, 2002.  REFS. LIB

Cao Fei: PRD Anti-Heroes. Sittard, Netherlands: Museum Het Domein Sittard, 2006.  MON.CAF

陳侗，〈為什麼廣東沒有新潮美術運動? 25種回答〉，《畫家》，1991年第5期。

Chen Tong, Why was there no New Wave Movement in Guangdong? 25 Responses, Painter Magazine, 1991 no. 5. PER.PAI

 
珠三角演義。香港；發生社；中國；西場館，2005。

DELTA CRISIS / analysis. Hong Kong: Happening Group, China: Museum W, 2005.  EX.CHN DEC 

Great Leap Forward, edited by Jeffrey INABA, Judy Chuihua CHUNG, Rem KOOLHAAS, and Szetsung LEONG. Koln, Germany: Taschen, 2001. REF.CCH7

Gwangju Biennale 2002 - Project 1: Pause Conception. South Korea: Gwangju Biennale Press, 2002. EX.KOR

超消費景觀。中國廣州；維他命藝術空間 ，2002。

Landscape of Sur-consuming, Guangzhou: Vitamin Creative Space, 2002. EXS.CHN.LSC

地方2。中國廣州；世界書店，1999。

Location 2. Guangzhou, China: The World Bookstore, 1999.  REFS.LIB

女人總是美麗的，1999。

Nu ren zong shi mei li de. Guangzhou, China: Libreria Borges, 1999. MONS.YAY

三角洲行動之大尾象: 一小時，沒空間，五回展。中國廣州；時代美術館，2016。

Operation PRD - Big Tail Elephants: One Hour, No Room, Five Shows. Guangzhou, China: Times Museum, 2016. MON.BTE

性別的恐懼：馮倩鈺攝影作品展, 1999。

Photographs of Feng Qianyu. Guangzhou, China: Libreria Borges, 1999. MONS.FQY

珠三角梟雄傳。中國廣州；廣東美術館，2005。

PRD Anti-Heroes: A Theater Project by Cao Fei. Guangzhou, China: Guangdong Museum of Art, 2005.  MONS.CAF 

逗留香港，香港: 漢雅軒，2004。

StopOver Hong Kong, Hong Kong: Hanart TZ Gallery, 2004。EX.HGK.SOH

第二屆廣州三年展 | 別樣: 一個特殊的現代化實驗空間 | 三角洲實驗室1 (D-Lab 1)。中國廣州；嶺南美術出版社，2004。

The Second Guangzhou Triennial | BEYOND: An Extraordinary Space of Experimentation for Modernization | D-Lab 1, edited by Hans Ulrich OBRIST, HOU Hanru and WANG Huangsheng. Guangzhou, China: Lingnan Art Publishing House, 2004.  REF.GZT

第二屆廣州三年展 | 別樣: 一個特殊的現代化實驗空間 | 三角洲實驗室2 (D-Lab 2)。中國廣州；嶺南美術出版社，2007。

The Second Guangzhou Triennial | BEYOND: An Extraordinary Space of Experimentation for Modernization | D-Lab 2, edited by Hans Ulrich OBRIST, HOU Hanru and WANG Huangsheng. Guangzhou, China: Lingnan Art Publishing House, 2007.  REF GZT

交易場域: 珠江三角洲的當代藝術與文化想像, 2007。

Trading Places: Contemporary Art and Cultural Imaginaries of the Pearl River Delta, edited by CHOW Szechung, Matthew TURNER, PANG Sinkwok Beatrix and TANG Siuwai. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Art School, Hong Kong Arts Centre, 2007.  REF.HKAS

Trade Routes: History + Geography. Johannesburg, South Africa: Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Council; Amersterdam, Netherlands: Prince Claus Fung for Culture and Development, 1997.   EX.SOA.JBB.1997

劉慶元木刻作品展, 1999。

Woodcut of Liu Qingyuan. Guangzhou, China: Libreria Borges Institute for Contemporary Art, 1999. MONS.LQY

典藏國際版,  台北: 典藏雜誌社, 2003年6月, 第2卷, 第2期。

Yishu: Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art, Volume 2, Number 2, June 2003. Taipei, Taiwan: Art & Collection Group. PER.YIS

典藏國際版，台北: 典藏雜誌社，2004年3月，第3卷, 第1期。

Yishu: Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art, Volume 3, Number 1, March 2004. Taipei, Taiwan: Art & Collection Group. PER.YIS

Anthony Yung is AAA Researcher.

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