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The Ancient Olympic Games
Venue: Shanghai Museum
Time: 1 May – 12 July 2008
The ancient Olympic Games were first held in 776 BC when athletes from various Greek city states competed for not much more than a pat on the back and a flower wreath. Now much of the history of that time was laid bare through "The Ancient Olympic Games," an exhibition on loan from the British Museum run at Shanghai Museum. The exhibit featured 108 cultural relics from the ancient Olympic Games - from sculpture, bronzeware and silver coins to jewellery and ceramics.

To go with the exhibition of A Century of Olympics Games, we organised a lecture at the Capital Museum, given by Ms Beth McKillop, Director of Collections and Keeper of the Asian Department, Victoria & Albert Museum. Please click here to read more.

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Visual Arts

Sculpting the future—we're bringing you the best Young British Artists - Damien Hirst, Tracy Emin and more.

In the mid-1990s, the BritArt or Young British Artists movement, centering on the work of Damien Hirst, startled the public and artistic community and asserted British influence in the international arts scene. Hard-hitting work continued with Tracey Emin's candid revelations of her inner and everyday life: contemporary British artists use every possible medium of expression, including themselves. New work in video and digital media is celebrated at the Liverpool Biennial and Video Positive, while the National Review of Live Art in Glasgow challenges audiences with new live work by invited performers. The annual Turner Prize, awarded to a British artist under 50, is one of the most prestigious arts prizes in the world and a focus for developments in contemporary art. The Jerwood Prize is the largest award of its kind given to a single artist and has helped to revitalise interest in painting.

Since the heyday of Henry Moore, there has never been a better time for public art in the UK. Rachel Whiteread's monumentalist pieces transform the ordinary. Anthony Gormley's colossal Angel of the North is both the guardian and pride of the north east of England. When Mark Wallinger became the first artist to use the empty plinth in London's Trafalgar Square as a site, his life-sized figure of Christ placed the old against the new, the grand against the humble. These examples can be seen across the UK visual arts scene.   

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A Century of Olympics Games   

Dates: 15 January – 28 February 2008 . Venue: Hall M, Basement, Capital Museum    

Article of the Week   

What's up in the UK visual arts industry? Want to know more about the UK visual arts awards and various festivals? Find out the answers here.   

Visual Arts   

We bring you all the latest news about the UK visual arts. Please read the news here.   

ARTICLE OF THE WEEK

Every week, our editor will present you one article in Chinese to review what happened in the UK music scene lately.

VISUAL ARTS NEWS

1. British Artist in China – John Atkin
From April, we started to feature British artists living and working in China.

• In April, David Evison talked about his life experience and sculpture. Please click here to read more.
• In May, Scottish born artist Vanessa Notley talked about her life, work and exhibition in Beijing in the last two years. Please click here to read more.
• In June, Andrew Kelly is having his exhibition at Xiamen University. A major concern of his practice is how value may be placed on ‘artworks’. The work is produced in response to his feelings’ paradox, that either art is not appreciated enough, or sanctified too much, either by artists themselves or other figures in the art world. Please click here to read more.
• John Atkin’s most recent output has been commissioned by Beijing Municipal Government, is to make a new sculpture for Olympic Park, Beijing. His sculpture “Strange Meeting” has been sited in July 2008 adjacent to the major architectural landmarks of the Olympic Games. Please click here to read more.

2. The Ancient Olympic Games
Venue: Shanghai Museum
Time: 1 May – 12 July 2008
The ancient Olympic Games were first held in 776 BC when athletes from various Greek city states competed for not much more than a pat on the back and a flower wreath. Now much of the history of that time is being laid bare through "The Ancient Olympic Games," an exhibition on loan from the British Museum currently running at Shanghai Museum. The exhibit features 108 cultural relics from the ancient Olympic Games - from sculpture, bronzeware and silver coins to jewellery and ceramics.

Visual Arts Projects Archive

Please come here to explore the visual arts projects we did or supported in China: Aftershock: Contemporary British Art 1990-2006（2006-2007）， As Is When: A Boom in British Printmaking 1961-1972（2007）， David Blandy Solo Exhibition（2007）， Christopher Cook Solo Exhibition（2007）， Silver Of The Stars（2007）.   

VISUAL ARTS WEBLINKS

Here are many websites you can check out the information about the UK visual arts. Click here to open the gate to the world of the UK visual arts.