Wang Gongxin (born in Beijing, China, 1960) is an artist who lives and works in Beijing. Wang graduated with a BA from Capital Normal University in Beijing (1982) and became a visiting scholar at SUNY Cortland and Albany, NY, USA (1987). Upon his return to China, Wang abandoned realist painting and turned to video and installation, creating site-specific works. He became an intermediary of cross-cultural exchange between China and the West. Wang was awarded the Martell Extraordinary Artists Award at the Chinese Museum, Beijing, China (2007) and was nominated for the Olivier Award for Best Set Design for Wild Swans, London, UK (2013). Select group exhibitions include Inside Out: New Chinese Art (1998) at P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, New York, USA; Revolutionary Capitals (1999) at the Institute of Contemporary Art, London, UK; The New Works of Wang ,GongXin and Lin, TianMiao (2001) at The Loft New Media Art Space, Beijing, China; Re:Duchamp, Travelling Exhibition (2001) at the Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy; Shanghai Biennial (2002) at Shanghai Art Museum, China; Guangzhou Triennial (2002) at Guangzhou Art Museum, China; Welcome to The LOFT in Beijing project at “PAUSE” 4th Gwangju Biennial, Korea; Metropolitan Iconographies (2002) at the 25th Sao Paulo Biennial, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial (2003) in Japan; The New Works of Wang, Gongxin Lin, Tianmiao (2005) at Courtyard Gallery Annex, Beijing, China; Projected Realities: Video Art from East Asia (2006) at Asia Society and Museum, New York, USA; The Real Thing: contemporary art from China (2007) at the Tate Liverpool, UK; Art in Motion (2007) at Long March Space, Beijing, China; Half-life Of A Dream: Contemporary Chinese Art From The Logan Collection (2008) at SFMoMA, San Francisco, USA; Reshaping History Chinart from 2000 to 2009 (2010) China National Convention Center, Beijing, China, The 7th Shenzhen Sculpture Biennale (2012) at OCT Contemporary Art Terminal, Shenzhen, China; Group Show (2013) at Art Basel Hong Kong, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center, Hong Kong, China; and Move on Asia: Video Art in Asia 2002 to 2012 (2013) at ZKM Media Museum, Germany. Select solo exhibitions include BIAO (1995) at Halle 10, Ludwingsburg, Germany; Digging a Hole in Beijing (1995) at NO.12 House of Arts, Beijing, China; Wang Gongxin from Beijing (2002) at Contemporary Art Center of South Australia, Australia; It’s not about the neighbors (2009) at Arrow Factory, Beijing, China; Relating-Wang Gongxin solo show (2010) at Platform China, Beijing, China; My Sun – Wang Gongxin solo show (2012) at Asia Society and Museum, New York, USA; Wang Gongxin Solo Show (2013) at Media Art Asia Pacific Space, Australia; and Present · Being (2015) at OCAT Shanghai. Wang is represented by Pekin Fine Arts in Beijing, Michael Petronko Gallery in New York, and Walsh Gallery in Chicago.
Beijing was home to high-energy experimental art practices, including Beijing East Village performances and apartment art, in the 1990s. The practices that were critical of their socio-political context are often referred to today as underground art. How did underground networks function, and how did censorship affect their operation and production? In this conversation, the artists Lin…
