Tuesday: Bologna Fiere, the organizers of SH Contemporary, hosted a press conference in Beijing to outline the 2014 edition of the fair.
Reporters gathered to listen to Duccio Campagnoli, President of Bologna Fiere Group, and Art Director Guido Mologni as they introduced the form for this year’s edition of the Shanghai-based fair, which aims to make a comeback in 2014.
Mologni emphasized a focus on Chinese and Asian galleries, with an aim to appeal to native collectors in rich second-tier cities close to Shanghai—for example, Suzhou, Ningbo and Hangzhou. The breakdown of the 100 or so galleries slated for participation this year is 60% Asian, of which 40-45% will hail from China; the remaining 20-30% will be made up of galleries from overseas.
The “Guest Country” this year will be Japan. In addition to the galleries, the main sections of the fair will be “Promising”, to feature emerging artists under 35 years of age; “Special Projects”, onsite installations to enliven the exhibition; and “Talks,” for example, to highlight the role of gallerists in the region.
Occupying the Exhibition Center alongside the fair will be a special light show from American artist Andrew Duff, noted for the use of lasers in his installation work. Added to the program this year will be an evening dedicated to Shanghai’s museums on Wednesday 10th September.