Universal Studios - Beijing, Beijing - Gallery news: Chinese Contemporary Art Awards (CCAA): Who Are the Winners?


Chinese Contemporary Art Awards (CCAA): Who Are the Winners? (23.5.2006)

		Chinese Contemporary Art Awards (CCAA) is an award first established in 1998 by the Chinese Contemporary Art Association to honor Chinese contemporary artists for their outstanding artistic achievements, given every two years. The CCAA jury convened in Beijing, May 15-16, 2006 to select the winners. The jury consists of Ai Weiwei (Conceptual artist, Beijing), Chris Dercon(Director of Haus der Kunst, Munich), Fan Di'an (Director of National Art Museum of China, Beijing), Ruth Noack (Curator of DOCUMENTA 12, Kassel), and Uli Sigg (Founder of CCAA, Switzerland). The winners are: Zheng Guogu, Winner, CCAA 2006 Cao Fei, Best Young Artist, CCAA 2006 Honorable Mention: Chen Shaoxiong Gong Jian Hong Hao Kan Xuan Li Dafang Liu Wei Qin Ga Qiu Anxiong Zhou Xiaohu The jury also selected Huang Yongping as Contribution Artist of CCAA 2006, honoring his longtime contribution to Chinese contemporary art. Uli Sigg, founder of the CCAA says: "An unexcited and deliberate reflection of the present art production in China such as the CCAA is quite useful in a time where the market for Chinese contemporary art has heated up to this degree." The purpose of setting up the CCAA was to encourage these Chinese artists who show originality and peculiar talents in artistic creation. By granting the Awards the Association also aims at promoting knowledge about contemporary artists as well as about their works through its publications and exhibitions accompanying the awards. Thereby the Association intends to enhance people's awareness and appreciation of the constructive role that Chinese artists are playing in the development of the contemporary culture. Jury Statement to CCAA 2006 "The choices by the jury reflect highly individual positions in contemporary art from mainland China, by artists in their 20's, 30's and 40's, who are developing work, independently from expectations raised by an uncontrollable, globalized art market, superficial, thematic or nationalistic exhibitions, and the so-called internationalist art as seen in some biennials; They combine technical and stylistic discipline with content matter which reflects their own hazardous positions as artist in a complex urban and social environment. Their reflections go as far as revisiting more traditional art styles or visualizing generational issues, through the means of both conventional and new media. These artists not only confront, they also connect." Jury Statement about selected Artists Zheng Guogu, Winner of CCAA 2006 "Zheng Guogu's willingness to push the limits of artistic expression, his reflection of societal changes as well as Chinese tradition, his pursuit of his personal vision despite difficult conditions, his interest in expanding his practice to include others, and his formal precision all point to a strong artistic intelligence, which unanimously convinced the jury." Cao Fei, Best Young Artist of CCAA 2006 "Cao Fei gives visual expression to the feelings and social conditions of contemporary urban Chinese youth, taking up images from popular culture and moving them across genres in a surprising and intelligent way." Huang Yongping, Contribution Artist of CCAA 2006 "Huang Yongping represents an early pioneering movement of Chinese artists who created conflictual work with a strong conceptual basis, which continued to inspire and influence Chinese artists both in China and abroad for more than twenty-years. In moving to France, Ping developed his own style and content without loosing "base", creating his own international Chinese art."


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