QINHUANGDAO.- On the occasion of its fifth anniversary, Aranya Art Center announced the launch of its first affiliate branch, Aranya Art Center North, featuring three solo exhibitions by Chinese artists Cao Minghao and Chen Jianjun, Ma Hailun, and Zheng Haozhong, along with two special artist talks.

Aranya Art Center North is located at Aranya North Coast, in Qinhuangdao’s Beidaihe New District. Spanning youth culture, athletics, fashion, the arts, and children’s development, Aranya North Coast explores expanding possibilities for avant-garde culture, and for riverine and coastal lifestyles. It is built along the banks of the Dapu river, with the vibrant Riverain town center at its core.

Aranya Art Center North is a comprehensive art venue designed by renowned Japanese architect Kazunari Sakamoto (Kazunari Sakamoto Architectural Laboratory) and Chinese architect Liu Yichun (Atelier Deshaus). Occupying 3,843 square meters with a total interior area of more than 5,000 square meters, it will serve as a hub for future exhibitions and cultural activities at Aranya North Coast. The center features an indoor plaza of over 2,000 square meters, surrounded by six box-like galleries that open out from the center like “vitrines” to connect the interior and exterior space and catalyze artistic encounters for those who pass by.

In the initial phase, four of the galleries will be activated first as exhibition spaces. Aranya Art Center North will continue to focus on the works of pioneering contemporary artists from China and abroad with an emphasis on community engagement and the transformation of community activities into exhibitions, with a rich offering of artistic and cultural programs including the Aranya Winter Residency Exhibition Series.

Three new solo exhibitions

Aranya Art Center North is pleased to present the first museum solo exhibition of Chinese artists Cao Minghao and Chen Jianjun, as well as the eponymous solo exhibitions of Chinese artists Ma Hailun and Zheng Haozhong.

As a new contemporary art venue at Aranya North Coast, Aranya Art Center North’s inaugural exhibition stays rooted in Aranya’s community focus as it sets out on a continued exploration of the theme of “how to live together.” Zheng Haozhong’s recent works focus on the artist and creative communities around him. In an era where artist communities are being forced to disperse, the collective connections among artists are particularly precious. Ma Hailun turns her lens to the ethnic and cultural diversity of her homeland of Xinjiang, inviting ordinary people to share their stories through the Uruklyn Public Project. Meanwhile, Cao Minghao and Chen Jianjun’s practice aims to reveal ancient wisdom that teaches us how to coexist with nature, all living things, and the immaterial. —Damien Zhang, Director of the Aranya Art Center

The exhibitions are organized by Damien Zhang, Director of the Aranya Art Center, together with Exhibition Coordinator Wu Yiyang and Curatorial Assistant Wang Jiaming. The exhibitions are on view from September 22, 2024 through February 9, 2025.