1 - How Art Writings and Discourses Can Instigate (Cedong) - From 'Farewell to Post-colonialism' to ‘Qilu Criticism’

The 2008 Guangzhou Triennial, ‘Farewell to Post-colonialism,’ represented a unique intersection of the Chinese art community with the addressed discourse. It highlighted the discrepancy between locally-rooted artists and the agenda of international contemporary art. The tension arising from the imposition of external intellectual frameworks, juxtaposed with the desire for more authentic and original expressions, underscored a prevailing dissatisfaction among practitioners. This sense of discontent was a shared sentiment, while this edition of triennial attempted to instigated translocal discussions. 

This presentation will share NIE Xiaoyi’s research on ‘Cedong,’ a Chinese word referring to ‘instigating and mobilising’ in a political and social context, and appropriated by NIE into the curatorial discourse as an expansion of ‘curating’ or ‘curation’ burdened by the tradition of art histories and museums. Considering both curatorial practices and art criticism as approaches to facilitate connections and discussions, NIE will emphasis on these approaches’ effects in exposing discontents, dis-consensus and misunderstandings. The presentation will offer a reflexive account of co-editing Qilu Criticism, an independent art writing platform since 2021. Instead of only acting in mainland China, Qilu Criticism is an emerging, decentralised, and long-term endeavour focused on supporting Sinophone art writers. However, it not only faces the recurrent questions of usefulness and influence of art writings, but also often encounters the tension and fractures between different contexts. A clue flows from 'Farewell to Post-colonialism' to ‘Qilu Criticism’: How curatorial practices and art writings can provoke, instigate, heal, and felicitate?