RAS Art Focus

(REPEAT SESSION)

The Legacy of the Shanghai Biennale:

Its Past, Present, and Future

Sunday, 1 March 2026

1:45 am Registration

2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

Our 2025-2026 Art Focus series Integrating China's Artistic Heritage seeks to explore the ways in which China's rich artistic heritage are being interpreted and integrated in our present era. Organized and curated by Julie Chun (Art Historian and Art Focus Convener), each program in the series examines how China's artistic tradition continues to remain relevant and inspirational for current generation of artists, both within China and those from abroad.

Initiated on March 18, 1996, the inaugural Shanghai Biennale, held at the Shanghai Art Museum, was an ambitious undertaking to present contemporary works by Chinese artists in efforts to participate in the global cultural arena. Unprecedented and fraught with challenges, the early editions of the Shanghai Biennale were nonetheless driven by optimism and a spirit of collaboration. Over the course of its thirty-year history, the Shanghai Biennale has witnessed a compelling trajectory of expansion, prompting us to engage in ongoing discussions about the role of art in society.

For the March Art Focus session (repeated due to high demand), we will be on-site at the Power Station of Art, the venue of the Shanghai Biennale since the ninth edition in 2012. With the passing of three decades, we will begin our session with a historical overview of the Shanghai Biennale's development, with special attention on the pivotal editions that brought the city of Shanghai to the attention of the international art world. We will also compare how the current 15th edition contrasts to those of the recent years. Engaging with selected body of works, we will examine how the curatorial theme of the current Shanghai Biennale relates to the present state of contemporary art in the global biennale landscape, and discuss the possible directions the future editions might take.