Shanghai Futurism I: Graphic Design and Typography in China-Then and Now

Time: March 22nd, 3:00, as part of the Shanghai International Literary Festival 2009

What is the current state of graphic design and typographic experimentation in China? What is the extent of its influence on visual arts, and media, from books to magazines, or album covers to movie credits to advertisements? How is it used in underground scenes as a dynamic vehicle for visual communication–from Beijing to Shanghai to Shenzhen–both today and traditionally?

Inspired by the centenary of the publication of F.T. Marinetti’s Futurist Manifesto, which was republished in Shanghai in 1921 and had a vast influence on the artists and designers at the time, the panel discussion will look at the rise and evolution of graphic design and typography in China since the early 20th century.

Three distinguished panelists, Lynn Pan, Ou Ning, and Pan Jian Feng will present their investigations from both historical and contemporary perspectives in order to provide a understanding of the creative process behind Chinese graphic design and typography and its strong connection to poetry, literature and art-making. Lynn Pan will take us back to the radical ideas explored by artists a century ago in Shanghai and Ou Ning will share some of the most groundbreaking work from today’s most talented designers and typographers, from Guangzhou to Beijing. Pan Jian Feng’s personal story will wrap up the panel and all three speakers will aim to place these distant relatives of the visual arts within the context of contemporary artistic movements.

Organized and moderated by Defne Ayas in collaboration with PERFORMA09-New York, this program will be presented as part of the Shanghai International Literary Festival 2009.

Panelists

Ou Ning
Ou Ning’s cultural practices encompass multiple disciplines. As a curator, Ou Ning initiated the Get It Louder exhibition which tours in the major cities of China every two years and has become an important platform for young and innovative artists and designers from around the world. Ou Ning is the appointed chief curator of 2009 Shenzhen and Hong Kong Bi-city Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture and also the commissioned curator of the sound art section in China Power Station, an exhibition presented by the Serpentine Gallery at London’s Battersea Power Station.

As an editor and artist, Ou is known for his involvement in urban research and his archive and documentary projects such as San Yuan Li (participant of the 50th Biennale di Venezia in 2003) and Da Zha Lan. He is a frequent contributor of various magazines, books and exhibition catalogues and has lectured around the world. In the late 1990s, he founded U-thèque, an independent film and video society. Later, he launched Alternative Archive, his personal studio as well as a platform for alternative cultural activities. He’s currently based in Beijing, China and is the Director of Shao Foundation, a non-profit organisation focused on cultural production and social engineering. He was born in 1969, lived and worked in Guangzhou until September 2006, when he moved to Beijing.

Pan Jian Feng
Pan Jian Feng was born into an artistic family and studied fine calligraphy as a child. He graduated with Masters degrees in Visual Communication from the China Academy of Art and the University of Central England. Before starting his own practice Alt-space, he worked in senior positions at JWT and McCann Erickson, providing him with solid experience in typography design. Currently Pan Jian Feng is focusing his skills on both experimental and commercial topography design with the aim of developing a forum for international dialogue in the typography field. He is one of China’s foremost typeface creators and design strategists.

Lynn Pan
Lynn Pan is the best-selling author of Sons of the Yellow Emperor: A History of the Chinese Diaspora, Tracing it Home: A Chinese Journey and The Encyclopedia of the Chinese Overseas. Her most recent book is Shanghai Style: Art and Design Between the Wars (2008). She lives in Shanghai.

Defne Ayas
Based in Shanghai since 2006, Defne Ayas works as a Program Director to the ArtHub Foundation-Prince Claus Fund Partnership 2008-2010, serving China and the rest of Asia, and as an art history instructor at New York University in Shanghai. Ayas is also curator of PERFORMA since 2004, the biennale of visual art performance with base in New York City, where she spends part of the year, producing and presenting performance productions by artists from all around the world. Prior to joining PERFORMA, Ayas worked as the Education and New Media Programmer at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, where she curated numerous new media-related performances and exhibitions. Ayas also works as an advisor, consultant and lecturer for a number of projects and institutions including Artist Pension Trust, China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, and Center for Contemporary Art in Kabul. Her expertise is primarily in new media and performance, and her interest in cultural exchanges and cultural policy making within Asia.