The 9th Gallery Weekend Beijing (GWBJ) officially opens on May 23, 2025, and will run through June 1. VIP Days will run from May 23 to 25, followed by Public Days from May 27 to June 1. Since its founding in 2017, GWBJ has consistently delivered a rich array of exhibitions, artistic programmes and an unparallel experience of Beijing’s gallery scene with the vision to bring together galleries and non-profit institutions across Beijing and beyond. Based in the 798·751 Community and extending its reach to other key cultural and art hubs such as the CBD Art Zone, Caochangdi Art District and Beijing Art Bonded Zone, this year’s GWBJ features 30 Beijing-based galleries and 11 non-profit institutions, actively energizing the city’s art scene and reinforcing Beijing’s position as a vital nexus on the global art landscape through over 50 exhibitions, 20 networking events and 20 professional forums.

The 9th edition of GWBJ places even greater emphasis on the potential of art to activate and shape the broader cultural ecology of the city. With the core ambition to establish “Beijing Art Season”, GWBJ joins forces with ART021 BEIJING, Beijing Dangdai Art Fair – both with a deep root in the capital city – as well as local galleries and non-profit institutions across the city. Furthermore, its reach also extends beyond the capital city through collaboration with Aranya Art Center in Qinhuangdao, contributing to the creation of a dynamic and interconnected art ecosystem centered around Beijing. According to Yan Mingdan, Deputy Party Secretary and General Manager of Beijing 798 Culture Technology Co., Ltd., “The 9th Gallery Weekend Beijing puts an emphasis on structural upgrades, redefining its role as a platform by adopting an invitation-only approach and eliminating participation fees. This marks a shift from simply presenting a ‘collection of exhibitions’ to a mechanism for sustainable development of the city’s art ecosystem. As one of the initiators of ‘Beijing Art Season’, the 798·751 Community integrates exhibitions, art fairs and public programmes to connect resources, enhance cultural impact and lower the threshold for participation. This inclusive approach has attracted more emerging galleries and non-profit organizations, further igniting the energy of the city’s art community. We hope that more people would engage with art in a relaxed and accessible way -  to truly experience it, connect with it and become part of it.”

Symbiosis in a Renewed Ecosystem

A major structural update is introduced in the exhibitor selecting process of the 9th GWBJ: transitioning from the previous application-based system to an invitation-only model. The final list of exhibitors was determined through a rigorous review and voting process by the Selection Committee comprising of Leng Lin (Founder, Beijing Commune), Luna Peng (Director, Galleria Continua Beijing), Qu Kejie (Founder, Magician Space), Tian Yuan (Founder, WHITE SPACE) and Xi Tao (Founder, A26 Space) – listed alphabetically by surname. Moreover, GWBJ has also revised the selection mechanism of its two major awards: the Best Exhibition Award and the Infinity Award. For the Best Exhibition Award, GWBJ invites Chen Li, Fu Yuan, Liu Qianxi, Sun Wenjie and Wang Huan (listed alphabetically by surname), all young curators with deep knowledge of the Beijing art ecosystem, to form a preliminary jury to nominate 8 to 10 exhibitions for the award. The final winner is then selected by a final jury panel comprising of 5 directors from non-profit art institutions: Carol Lu Yinghua, Philip Tinari, Tang Xin , Yang Beichen and Yan Shijie (listed alphabetically by surname). The Infinity Award is selected independently by the 5 young curators of the preliminary jury.

A Multifaceted Art Scene in Beijing with 50+ Exhibitions

Among the over 50 exhibitions presented during GWBJ, the wide array of exhibition formats and themes underscore how diverse perspectives are reshaping the contemporary art ecosystem.

As one of the oldest art media, painting remains a vital force in contemporary art. This year’s GWBJ maps the dynamics and diversities of painting through varied expressions and vocabularies. Espace Louis Vuitton Beijing presents Painting from Nature, featuring works by two major contemporary painters Joan Mitchell and Megan Rooney, and inviting viewers to explore the rich dialogue between the past and present of abstract and expressive painting. In the meantime, figurative painting continues to attract numerous practitioners, each approaching it with their unique perspectives. Wang Xingwei: New Works at Galerie Urs Meile and Tong Tianqing: The River at Star Gallery take a root in local social realities; Between the Shadow and the Highlight by artists Wang Evelyn Taocheng and Xinyi Cheng, a special GWBJ project presented by Antenna Space, Shades of Blue, solo exhibition by Philippine artist Nicholas Grafia at Hua International and Skyler Chen: Danger, Mystery, Love at Platform China delve into issues such as subjectivity in intimate relationships, identity politics and cultural translation. And in Li Shurui: Something Comes from Nothing at WHITE SPACE and Ye Linghan: Alone or Together at SPURS Gallery, the artists are particularly sensitive to the iteration of visual experiences, exploring how painting could convey and respond to new perceptions in the context of rapidly shifting media environment. Ghost Raising, Zhao Yinou’s solo exhibition at HdM Gallery, and Ling Yung: Spring Outing, co-presented by A26 Space and Each Modern, demonstrate how artists transform their personal and perceptual experiences into visual expressions.

With the drastic development of generative AI in recent years, the intersection of art and technology has once again become a central focus. Science and technology have the power to liberate art from the constraints of singular sense and two-dimensionality, and align profoundly with the spirit of art in exploring the unknown through experimentation and innovation. This dynamic is reflected in the exhibitions featured in GWBJ. Highlights include Anicka Yi: There Exists Another Evolution, But In This One at UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, exploring the concept of “biologized machine”; The VH AWARD Archive Exhibition at Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing, reflecting on the impact of accelerating technologies; and the 798 Art, Science and Technology Biennale 2025 launched by 798CUBE, which as the first biennale in China to examine intersections between art, science and technology, allows viewers to experience and reflect on the interplay between art and technology within the landscape of global contemporary art.

Video art breaks away from the fetishization of physical objects in traditional art, liberating art from the constraints of “objects” and fixed dimensions of time and space; and in the meantime, it reconstructs new reality within the virtual. During this year’s GWBJ, audience would discover how artists – both from China and abroad – resort to the evolving nature of the medium itself as well as pressing social discourses to offer insightful perspectives and innovative working methods. ShanghART Beijing presents works by Cao Shu, Yao Qingmei and Yin Yunya. Their distinct practices, rooted in different technical and narrative approaches, demonstrate a rich diversity of languages of video art. SPURS Gallery presents Vietnamese independent filmmaker and video/media artist Nguyen Trinh Thi. Through her signature poetic and layered video experiments, the artist revisits contested histories and current events. Swedish artistic duo Nathalie Djurberg and Hans Berg present three psychologically-charged clay-animation films alongside sculptural works at Lisson Gallery Beijing, transforming the gallery space into an immersive environment.

When addressing a specific time period or topic, group exhibitions – compared to solo shows – can present a bigger picture with collective responses and foster dialogues within these diverse individual expressions. In this year’s GWBJ, group exhibitions range from reflections on the grand time to thematic explorations of artistic concerns and contemporary experiences, as well as special presentations marking significant millstones for galleries and artists. As key players in Beijing’s art ecosystem, Taikang Art Museum and Beijing Inside-Out Art Museum present Unfinished Time: Chinese Contemporary Art of the 1980s & 1990s and It Always Sounds Somewhere: Sounding Sound Practice in Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong Since the 1990s respectively, both delving into artistic practices from a certain period of time. Abstract 303 and Abstraction Re-Creation – 20 Under 40 at X Museum explore the diverse dimensions of “abstraction” from both a historical perspective and through the lens of a younger generations of artists in China and from abroad. To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Galleria Continua (Beijing) presents Time Knows the Answer to Art, featuring works by 15 Chinese and international artists.

In the field of contemporary art, an increasing number of artists transform conventional sculptural forms into dynamic narratives through the reinvigoration of new materials, reinterpretation of everyday objects and integration of installation, video and other media. During GWBJ, many prestigious institutions and galleries present exhibitions that accentuate the dynamic media narratives in sculpture and installation, responding to social realities and spiritual concerns with diverse and experimental approaches. Liao Fei: Seeing All Forms at UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, structured around five keywords – matter, site, extension, infinity and inference – reveals the artist’s persistent interrogation of the fundamental laws of the physical world. Duo exhibition Shorten and Lengthen at Beijing Commune casts light on a broader dialogue between Mu Hua’s recent paintings and Yang Xinguang’s sculptural installations. Pu Yingwei: Red Computer at Hive Center for Contemporary Art and Guo Cheng: Bug at Magician Space imbue “installation” with meanings transcending the physical space. When artists take the initiative to orchestrate space and viewers’ senses, installation becomes a platform for collective memories and personal experiences to be woven together. Silent Emptiness by Chiharu Shiota at Red Brick Art Museum features a series of newly created site-specific installations that incorporate Eastern elements and local materials, responding to the architecture and environment of the museum.

Art Store: Fueling Connection with the Public

A highlight of “Beijing Art Season” is the “Art Store” specially presented by GWBJ. Featuring works by artists Hou Zichao and Hu Yinping, the project adopts a more open and versatile approach, intending to explore the multifaceted possibilities of contemporary artistic expression, respond to the growing diversity of art consumption and foster more direct and everyday interactions between art and the public. Stool 32: The Seated Figure by Hou Zichao, a temporary spatial installation consisting of a container wrapping in rally-racing logos fabricated by the artist, functions both as usable furniture and a modular and transformable structure. Blending functionality with sculptural language, the work explores the complex relationships between sports culture, landscape of consumption and environmental restoration. XiaoFang Pop-Up Store – How Much Is One Gram of Effort by Hu Yinping, on the other hand, originates from the “Art Brand” the artist established in 2015: Hu Xiaofang. Drawing on corporate mechanism and the logic of production and exchange, the artist commissioned women from her hometown to produce knitted goods in the name of “XiaoFang” and “Hu XiaoFang”- thereby subtly reshaping the town’s economic and daily life structures. In pop-up store, hats and textiles of various sizes wait for serendipitous encounters with their new owners.

Green Go Home: To Share and To Make Connections

At the 2025 GWBJ Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony for Best Exhibition Award and the Infinity Award, GWBJ team specially presents Green Go Home, a collaborative project made possible with the support of artists Tomas Vu and Rirkrit Tiravanija. As the prelude part of this special project, a culinary experience infused with Beijing’s local flavors is ingeniously crafted, embodying the project’s ethos of “shared food”. And at the after-party following the gala dinner, a series of choreographed programmes are featured, including silkscreen printing display, life performance and Fireflies in Deep Alley by Grasshead, a multidisciplinary theater production commissioned by GWBJ. Green Go Home draws inspiration from history but places greater emphasis on contemporary social-cultural reflection. Its versatile presentation formats and strong commitment to social interaction make it a unique platform for bridging different cultures and communities. Through a multifaceted programme of special commissions, forums, Art Store and other public events, GWBJ aims to enhance industry and public engagement and strengthen the cohesion of Beijing art ecosystem.

 [CW1]按姓氏拼音tang xin在前，中文同