Visitors view the China Design Centre display at Collect 2019 in Saatchi Gallery, London. [Photo by Bo Leung / China Daily]

New Chinese talent on display at major exhibition

Artists, designers, and galleries from across the craft world are in London for the 15th edition of the annual Collect exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery.

Collect: International Art Fair for Modern Craft and Design, as the event is known, brings together 45 different galleries in the Saatchi Gallery space, each curating its own displays to sell work made over the last five years by the world’s leading contemporary artists and designers.

“This fair is about introducing new work into the market,” said Isobel Dennis, director of Collect. “A lot of pieces were actually commissioned for the fair … we have got traditional materials like ceramics, glass and wood but we’ve seen some interesting work with plastics, with lacquer, with polystyrene and creating some wonderful pieces from jewelry to sculptural artworks.”

This year’s fair features 11 new exhibitors, including the London-based China Design Centre, which is presenting pieces by Wan Liya and Bian Xiaodong. Also new to the fair is Hong Kong’s Karin Weber Gallery; among its artists on display is Annie Wan, a Chinese contemporary ceramic artist.

Asian influences are seen throughout the fair, with gallery Ting-Ying presenting ceramics by emerging United States-based artist Liang Wanying, including a large-scale installation in space’s stairwells. There are also artists and galleries from Japan and South Korea.

Jack Qu, executive director of China Design Centre, said he wanted to promote China’s evolving contemporary art scene, which is generating a new wave of talent in art and design, by showcasing a collection of Chinese contemporary art in ceramics and metal.

“We’ve chosen some very contemporary works of art to show, but there is still a hint of a Chinese traditional element to them,” Qu said.

“It’s what collectors and Western audiences are looking for, something different from old Chinese antiques and what is on display in a museum.”

Other debuts at the fair are UK galleries House of Fly, James Freeman Gallery, Lemon Street Gallery and Cube Gallery.

Collect Open also returns, providing a platform for 15 presentations by 13 individual artist and two collaborators.