Yinchuan Biennale:Light Speed

by+Nancy+Gong

Yinchuan， seat of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in northwestern China， was once capital of the Western Xia Kingdom （1038-1227）. It was also a key stopping point on the ancient Silk Road， especially bustling as a trade hub linking China to the West. Marco Polo， a famous Italian traveler of the 13th Century， documented thriving commerce and diversified Western Xia culture there when he passed through.

On September 9， 2016， the First Yinchuan Biennale kicked off at Yinchuan Museum of Contemporary Art after eight months of preparation. Designed by Bose Krishnamachari， a distinguished international artist and curator from India， the Biennale invited 73 artists from 33 countries， who brought works including video， installation， photography， painting， and sculpture.

Themed “For an Image， Faster Than Light，” it aims to align artistic creations from around the world with current social problems.

Participating artists include modern international heavyweights as well as a new generation of budding artists such as Anish Kapoor， a well-known Indian sculptor who fuses Indian philosophy with Western art， Yoko Ono， a Japanese-American performance artist and musician， and Liam Gillick， a noted modern artist from Britain， in addition to young Chinese artists such as Song Dong， Tu Hongtao， and He Xiangyu， who have earned loyal followings in recent years.

The curtain of the exhibition will fall on December 18. For Bose， the curator， Yinchuan is the best place for such an event due to its geographical location at the juncture of the Yellow River and Helan Mountains， an important central point along the ancient Silk Road， which can still be evidenced by the local architecture， food， folklore， and traditional culture that reflect the integration of the Chinese and Islamic cultures. He hopes that the exhibition can transform Yinchuan into a stronghold for modern Chinese art featuring flavors of the Silk Road.