Recently, "Collectible Design" has ignited a "fire" in Shanghai this winter: in just a few months, the world-renowned Collection Design Art Fair "Design Miami" has entered the Bund Yuan No. 1 for the first time in Asia; cobra Gallery, Concave Space, Galley Sohe and other eye-catching "Collector's Design" art galleries have settled in Shanghai; at the West Bund Art Fair and ART021, the proportion of design plates has been greatly strengthened; the Yuan Museum of Design and Art Museum will soon be unveiled in Songjiang... Shanghai is gradually becoming the base camp of "collectible design".
"Collectible design", one end connected to art, the other connected to life, both original and practical. Its burning trend indicates that the open, innovative and inclusive Shanghai art market is creating a promising new increment, pointing to a broader consumption circle, and also echoing the further pursuit of quality life and home aesthetics by people in the city, pointing to the original meaning of art - lighting up life.
"Collectible design" has formed a hot spot in Shanghai, setting off a new trend of artistic lifestyle
The Cobra Gallery, tucked away in the Bund's century-old Building, the Samed Building, has continued to screen social networks since its unveiling. Bauhaus-style pianos and retro sideboards like table lamps are mixed with eclectic architecture to create a strange tension that is intriguing at every corner. Digging into the story behind the creation became an important clue for the gallery when selecting its works. In a pure white "square box" on Yuyao Road, there is a concave space that was freshly opened some time ago. The exhibits are hidden behind the frosted glass, revealing a mysterious silhouette. Stepping into the spacious main hall, you will be fascinated by the cactus-shaped standing lamp, the several cases that simulate the growth of plants, and the cursive chairs, as well as the exploration of materials and the challenges of manufacturing processes. The Yuan museum is about to open in a contemporary building with Chinese aesthetics in Songjiang, combing the aesthetic veins of oriental life, and looking for the source of creativity in life routines and cultural roots.
This type of art space, which has recently appeared more and more in Shanghai, has different styles, but the main one can be collectively called "collector's design". Its exhibits are like furniture and sculptural artworks, diverse and undefinable, balancing concepts, functions, aesthetics, experiences, etc., and are often limited in distribution. In the view of Wang Yu, the owner of The Concave Space Gallery, a very important feature of "collectible design" works is that they are closely related to life and experience. Collectors began to buy such works in large part to light up life, and the door of life was open to everyone. Based on the characteristics of this functional artwork, Lu Fangyuan, one of the founders of Cobra Gallery, admitted to reporters that he hopes that the selected works can have in-depth exchanges with the audience or collectors under the premise of ensuring that their presentation is sufficient to support the expression of ideas, and even evoke their timeless feelings about beauty. She believes that through the two-way interaction between people and things, the audience or collector will gradually develop a unique perspective on the aesthetics of life.
The market has a sensitive tentacle. During the third Shanghai International Art Trade Month, the weight of design cannot be ignored - the former design vane "Design Miami" chose to land in Asia from Shanghai, bringing the "collectible design" works of 34 of the world's top exhibitors, releasing a strong signal; later, the design unit was further expanded in the 2021 West Bund Art Fair, and the first addition of the Dome Art Center exhibition area was almost exclusively dedicated to this unit, sharing the new fashion of artistic lifestyle and contributing to the experience that many people relished. In the view of Jin Jiangbo, chairman of the Shanghai Creative Design Workers Association and vice president of the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts of Shanghai University, the "collector's design" market contains unlimited potential, especially when China is now entering the consumption structure of personalized consumption and young people as the main consumption force. "This kind of work has the originality and uniqueness of art, and it has more life functions than pure works of art, and the price is relatively close to the people." It can be priced to close to the art work, and can be sold as art derivatives and design works, the consumption chain is long, and the consumption scene is also very diverse. ”
The confluence of "collectible design" in Shanghai reflects the art agglomeration effect of Shanghai
In the industry's view, it is no accident that Shanghai has gradually become a base camp for "collectible design". There are many factors in the city's soil that are naturally "adapted" to this category that is compatible with art and life. Fu Jun, an art critic and deputy director of the Art Museum of the Shanghai Oil Painting and Sculpture Institute, pointed out that this is first of all closely related to Shanghai's increasingly confirmed status as an international art trading center in recent years. Design and art are not separated, cross-border integration is the trend of the times, and the confluence of "collectible design" in Shanghai reflects the art agglomeration effect of Shanghai. Secondly, "collectible design" with its artistic practicality is quite in tune with the increasing number of high-quality spaces in the city of Shanghai, whether it is commercial office space, third space such as coffee shops, bookstores, or home space. In addition, the favor for "collectible design" is an inevitable trend of focusing on quality life with the development of social culture, highlighting a leading life value and cultivating unique aesthetic taste.
It is true that when "collectible design" is forming a global art trend, the acceptance of this category reflects the international vision of Shencheng collectors. Song Tao, director of the Yuan Museum, added to reporters that the combination of art and life can be traced in ancient Chinese traditions. Ancient Chinese handicrafts are developed, and many materials such as lacquer, ceramics, metalwork, and glass have been used to empower life, pointing to a refined and elegant way of life. One of the most typical are stationery supplies, many of which are both practical and artistic. Shanghai is located in Jiangnan, which has always paid attention to the elegance of the literati, and it is natural to inherit such a context.
It is worth mentioning that for "collectible design", its envision is not only in the consumer side, but also in the production side. Jin Jiangbo told reporters that the authors of "collectible design" works are mostly young and middle-aged artists or designers, some of whom have rich overseas study and life experience, are good at grasping the internationally popular art language, integrate and penetrate cultural differences, and present a new design trend, wind direction, avant-garde pioneer, breaking boundaries. He believes that from the perspective of industry development, such a force can drive the exchange of high-end original design, set a stage for the cultivation of local design talents, and also lead the trend of life and art consumption scenes. Some scholars have pointed out that for more than a hundred years, Shanghai design has always stood at the head of the tide, and has accompanied the lifestyle, satisfying people's multiple enjoyment of the spiritual senses beyond the appearance of life. Nowadays, Shanghai is striving to become the design capital of the world, and is expected to contribute more local "source power" in the field of "collectible design".
Author: Fan Xin
Editor: Shi Wei
*Wenhui exclusive manuscript, please indicate the source when reprinting.
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