﹒ARTnews
This year’s ART021 brings together 53 galleries and special projects from 11 countries and regions. A closer look reveals an emerging trend: more galleries are expanding beyond their founding cities to establish overseas spaces—for instance, BANK recently opened a new location in New York, adding to its Shanghai base. This shift has sparked fresh discussions in the art world: Is the simultaneous domestic and international expansion of galleries a sign of industry consensus and operational maturity, or is it a necessary adaptation—and ambition—amid today’s complex global landscape?
BANK’s New York team has already laid a three-year operational foundation, having participated in multiple art fairs and organized limited-time pop-up exhibitions—such as last year’s show featuring queer performance artist Oliver Herring in a historic former restaurant space on the Bowery. One of our inaugural exhibitions in New York was curated by Fu Yuan, who moves fluidly between China and the U.S., a dual-mode approach that aligns with our philosophy.
Though BANK was founded in China and represents a higher proportion of Chinese artists, we’ve never deliberately emphasized a "Chinese identity." Contemporary art is, by nature, a universal language. Our goal is to expand this dialogue by fostering exchanges between creators from China and beyond.
**Just months into BANK’s New York operations, soaring shipping costs and unpredictable tariff policies have disrupted numerous exhibition plans.** In response, the gallery has shifted focus toward showcasing overseas Chinese diaspora artists—such as Patty Chang and Zheng Chongbin—whose work resonates locally while maintaining cultural ties.
Yet the enthusiastic reception from New York’s art community has been a welcome surprise. Amid global instability, BANK’s bold move has been met with celebration and attention from media and local circles. Talks and screening events at the New York space consistently draw packed crowds, injecting fresh dialogue into the city’s art ecosystem.
**I remain optimistic that market and geopolitical tensions will gradually ease.** While Chinese brands still need time to gain global traction, the increasing presence of Chinese artists, curators, and collectors abroad makes gallery internationalization inevitable. Of course, this requires mutual effort—China, too, must adopt a more open stance to engage the international art world. Moving forward, we plan to synchronize projects across borders, sustaining this vital cultural exchange.
**ART021 was originally BANK's neighbor—the fair's inaugural edition coincided with our founding year and took place at the Bund Origin complex, right next to our original Hong Kong Road space in Shanghai.** This serendipity made our collaboration feel destined, especially since I’ve long been friends with all three of its founders; we’ve always supported each other’s endeavors.
For this edition of ART021 BEIJING, the fair has moved to a striking new venue: a repurposed industrial gasometer. From the architectural adaptation to curated sections like the "Treasure Pavilion," the fair demonstrates a distinct local identity and brand ethos. Its audience—seasoned collectors who know exactly what to expect from ART021—allows us to present works that might feel *familiar-yet-elusive* to Beijing viewers. For instance, Lin Ke’s digital paintings or Zhang Yibei and Chen Ruofan’s installations, whose conceptual textures subtly resonate with the venue’s industrial aesthetics.
﹒THE ART-JOURNAL
ART021 BEIJING 2025: Industrial Heritage Meets Contemporary Pulse in the Capital
(May 22-25, 2025) The 2025 edition of ART021 BEIJING Contemporary Art Fair unfolds within the cavernous Qijiuguan gasometer and First Workshop at Beijing's 798/751 Art Zone. The main venue's brick-brown domed interior—with its vast, unobstructed space and graffiti-streaked white walls—immediately evokes the "Beijing aesthetic": a visceral reminder of how the district's industrial architecture became inextricably linked with China's early-2000s contemporary art movement. This year's relocation positions the fair at the epicenter of the city's art ecosystem, coinciding with the inaugural "Beijing Art Season"—a collaborative initiative between two local art fairs and Gallery Weekend Beijing. The move facilitates dynamic synergies with 798's dense gallery network while prompting deeper reflection: As a fair with both local and nomadic DNA, ART021 BEIJING's choice to anchor itself in this symbolically charged location invites us to re-examine Beijing's artistic landmarks and their evolving significance in today's cultural topography.
During The Art Newspaper's visits with participating galleries, many noted how Beijing collectors balance scholarly rigor with open-mindedness—valuing both an artwork's art-historical significance and its experimental potential. ART021's cross-regional approach further enriches this dynamic.
"ART021 has built strong local resonance as a fair brand," explained Shanghai-based BANK Gallery. "We intentionally brought artists already familiar to Beijing audiences—like Zhang Yibei and Xie Qi—while also introducing our new roster." At the heart of their booth stood Zhang Yibei’s sculpture Clumsy Tracing (2020), a 2024 UCCA Young Sponsors’ Award winner that interrogates industrial, urban, and domestic spaces through material reassembly—a conceptual echo of Northern China’s industrial heritage.
Nearby hung two psychologically charged portrait fragments by Xie Qi, a Central Academy of Arts & Design alumna long embedded in Beijing’s scene. The gallery also spotlighted rising talents: Lin Ke (currently featured in BANK Shanghai’s solo show) alongside Chen Ruofan and Gong Hengzhi, whose works expanded the dialogue with Beijing’s industrial-tinged context.
﹒Noblesse+
As young artists actively shaping today’s art scene—Wang Xiyao, Wang Xingyun, Xie Qun, and Zhang Yibei, all born in the 1990s—their works intertwine personal narratives, geographic displacement, and material experimentation. These creators not only traverse borders, mediums, and cultural frameworks to engage with contemporary issues but also persistently excavate deeper connections between self and world. On the eve of 2025 ART021 BEIJING, we spoke with these artists about forging multiplicity within contemporary art.
Could you introduce the works presented at ART021 BEIJING?
Zhang Yibei: "Ashes and Remnants" is a 2020 series comprising four sculptural groups: Ashes and Remnants, Old Lesions, Clumsy Tracing, and The Child Who Vomited Organs (the latter two are exhibited here). The arrangements simulate skeletal remains after a fire—like the resin tomatoes encased in silicone, crystallized as if charred. Tomatoes are key: neither fully vegetable nor fruit, they’re ubiquitous in Chinese households, becoming metaphors for domestic spaces.
"Boundaries" surface subtly in your work—between material/immaterial, hard/soft, visible/invisible. How do you navigate these ambiguities?
Zhang Yibei: I follow intuition during creation and installation. It’s about translating everyday perceptions, which alternate between clarity and haziness—much like our own senses.
Your pieces exude a quiet yet forceful structural tension, softness concealing resilience. Does this carry psychological weight? What emotions do you hope to evoke?
Zhang Yibei: Recently, I’ve been exploring psychological concepts like defense mechanisms. Some works channel my immediate emotions, but I aim to spark collective resonance. I’m equally curious about divergent interpretations—viewers’ perspectives enrich the work.