“Asia is where the excitement is” - Nadia Samdani, Samdani Art Foundation
Since its inception, Asia NOW has showcased a selection of international galleries in the Asian art market, pursuing its annual mission to explore the region defined by Asia Society, which stretches from Japan to Iran, from China to Australia, across Central Asia to the Asia Pacific. A dedicated art fair, Asia NOW focuses on those "peripheral" areas identified as influential hub of traditional culture and contemporary arts. Asia NOW aims to feature emerging and established contemporary practices from Asia's art scenes, and continues to showcase the richness and variety of artistic creation in these territories and their diasporas.
GUEST CURATORS
Asia NOW is honoured to welcome the world-renowned art collective Slavs and Tatars as the Guest Curator. Their exhibition is dedicated to the unique savoir-faire of textiles in Central Asian contemporary art. It is inspired by the poetic phrase "Nouer des Nuages” (“to knot clouds”in English), from the Persian term “abr-bandi”, which refers to the weaving of ikats, a vernacular textile.
The exhibition will take the form of a journey marked by various experiments, set within the iconic Monnaie de Paris, the oldest minting institution in operation as of today. Slavs and Tatars is an international art collective devoted to an area situated East of the former Berlin Wall and West of the Great Wall of China known as Eurasia.
Since it was founded in 2006, the collective has demonstrated its agility in addressing the societal issues, opening up new avenues for contemporary discourse through an indiosyncratic form of knowledge production that includes popular culture, spiritual and esoteric traditions, oral traditions, modern myths and academic research.
Their works have been exhibited around the world, including at the Vienna Secession, MoMA in New York, Salt in Istanbul, and the Albertinum in Dresden, among others. Their practice is based on three main pillars: exhibitions, publications, and lecture-performances. The collective has published over twelve books, including the most recent Look Book released by Distanz Verlag. Its territorial focus and the breadth of its practice make the collective a relevant choice for Asia NOW, which seeks to explore the diversity of Asia.
In the exhibition specifically designed for Asia NOW at Monnaie de Paris, the Cour d’Honneur will feature a Slavs and Tatars Chaikhaneh (tea salon), housed within a traditional kazakh yurt. At this occasion, Slavs and Tatars will also create a Reading Room as a site for gatherings and discussions.
The centrepiece of the project, an exhibition of 14 contemporary artists curated by Slavs and Tatars, will explore the role of textiles in the region's cultural practices. The weaving of ikats, an example of a vernacular textile, is often referred to using the Persian word “abr-bandi”, which means “to knot clouds”. In the 21st century, at the heart of the information age, this knotting of clouds suggests another horizon: that of data and digitisation, as much as that of dyes and fabrics.
GALLERIES
For the second year of Asia NOW at the Monnaie de Paris, Asia NOW has chosen to allocate larger spaces to a select number of galleries. In line with the latest trend, American galleries from New York and Los Angeles, as well as some of the most prominent West Asian galleries, including Dubai, will be participating. 2023 also marks the return of Chinese galleries after several years of absence due to the pandemic. This year, 65 galleries will gather at the Monnaie de Paris to present a selection of emerging and internationally renowned artists.
CENTRAL ASIA
Curatorial platform / Kazakhstan galleries present More than twenty Central Asian artists showcased at the fair A presence is established through an exhibition of contemporary Central Asian artists curated by Slavs and Tatars et under the poetic inspiration of "to tie to clouds", derived from the Persian term “abr-bandi”, which refers to the weaving ikats, an example of vernacular textile. This exhibition will feature 14 artists, including 11 women.
THE GRAND RETURN OF JAPAN AND KOREA
With the presence at this year’s Asia NOW, the two cutting-edge galleries based in Tokyo, Maki Gallery and COMMON, will be feature a cross-presentation of two Japanese artists, Anne Kagioka Rigoulet and Keisuke Tada. Galerie Perrotin will put on a solo show by the young Japanese artist Ob, with the exhibition curated by Takashi Murakami. Galerie Peter Kilchmann presents a duo show by Leiko Ikemura and Shirana Shabbazi. Japanese artist Lei Saito, presented by 91530 Le Marais, will inaugurate "Cooking is Caring", a new program conceived by Asia NOW, with her installation “Chanvre et Eau" (see Special Projects).
NEWCOMERS & RETURNING MAJOR GALLERIES
Almost half of this year's galleries are participating in Asia NOW for the very first time. We are delighted to welcome new participants such as Galerie Peter Kilchmann from Zurich with a duo show by Leiko Ikemura and Shirana Shahbazi, Fragment from New York with Korean artist Young-Jun TAK, Galerie Eric Mouchet with a solo show by Kubra Khademi, Harper's Gallery in New York, The Third Line in Dubai with Slav and Tatar artists, Tabari Artspace in Dubai, Isabelle van den Eynde in Dubai, Gene Gallery in Shanghai, and Inna Art Space in Hangzhou.
After an absence of several years due to the pandemic, we are delighted to welcome back MadeIn Gallery - one of Shanghai's finest galleries - with a group show including XU ZHEN®, one of the leading artists on the Chinese scene. Taipei-based EACH MODERN and Over the Influence will also be returning to Paris.
