State of the Arts: Almost Art Project Displays Works of Chinese 'Outsider Art'

State of the Arts is our regular arts column whereby we take a look at the newest moves in Beijing's creative scene and highlight art news as well as exhibitions, artists, and openings that you should seek out.

What comes to mind when you hear the expression ‘almost art’? One would assume perhaps that nothing can actually fall outside of the scope of art, as many of the shows we have reviewed so far by SOTA can attest. You name a subject, material, medium, and can be certain that an artist somewhere has worked with or around it.

The Almost Art Project, masterminded by contemporary artist and curator Sammi Liu, tackles the idea of 'almost art' by specializing in showcasing works made by non-professional artists, or also called ‘outsiders’ (素人 sùrén). The exhibition, made up of approximately 300 works from 41 amateur artists, of which 15 will be debuting in the ‘almost art’ circle, will show for a month. 

Now in its fourth edition, the festival encompasses exhibitions at Tabula Rasa Gallery and Whitebox Art Center and marks the launch of their annual publication Art SU, an editorial project that aims at observing, discussing, and studying ‘outsider art’ as an independent category in China.

However, the Almost Art Project is not so much questioning what works or subjects fall into the ‘Art’ category, but rather to re-establish the intrinsic and artistic ‘feeling’ and ‘impetus’ of the form, that they argue has been lost in part due to the overly technical and heavy-in-theory artistic practice. That means that they look to highlight how artistic practice brings about unexpected results in a subject's works.

The emergence of artists away from the guise of technical rigueur, often overseen by artistic academies, is nothing new; a fine example is one of the founding members of the Chinese ‘Stars Group’, Huang Rui, later considered one of the most notable names within the Chinese contemporary art movement. Huang's formative days did not occur within the ranks of the most highly regarded local art institutions, an uprising that involved the bold move of holding an exhibition with a series of like-minded artists on the gates of the China Arts Gallery (now the National Art Museum of China). The unapproved exhibition was a commentary on how those that were to exhibit inside such institutions were a privileged few given that they came from academia and provided a stamp of approval by higher-ups to disseminate their technique and ideology to the public, their pupils, and future artists. 

These days it doesn’t seem that necessary – or possible – to go to such lengths to shed light on art that’s being made outside of the accepted academic/technical circles, especially those created to nurture the future artists. However, the organizers of the Almost Art Project are convinced about the potential that this particular type of art has to offer, and for that reason have created a space to showcase it in an organized and open fashion.

Prior to the exhibitions, we spoke to Sammi Liu to better understand what she and her team hope to achieve via this interesting project.

What should people expect from this year's edition of the Almost Art Project and in what ways will it differ from previous editions?
As something completely novel, we did an open call this year: We sent out an invitation on our WeChat and Weibo Official Accounts to all the outsider artists – that means artists who have no art training but that have engaged in art making for a period of time. As a result, we received 92 applications out of which we chose 15 new artists who’ll be showing their works at the festival. Their backgrounds and ages are very disparate; from university dropouts to retired farmers, aged from 18 to over 70 years old! We also we received recommendations from art scholars, professional artists, and institutions, and thus managed to find another 11 new artists, so in total, more than half of the artists exhibiting this year are doing so for the first time, and many of them are doing it for the first time ever in a public space. Their styles are very unique and quite different from the contemporary art you often see nowadays. 

In the 'almost art' concept there are a few references that should be understood first in order to grasp what is being referred to via this abstract term, especially because these days there is very little that constitutes something outside of the 'art realm' itself. Is what we are talking about here is Aboriginal art, native art, and acquainted art? Could you explain what such names mean, and in which ways the project represents these categories?
Well, the direct translation of the expression 素人艺术 sùrén yìshù is ordinary people’s or non-professional art. What I mean to do here is to focus on people who have no art training at all, but who still have an urge to create. They are free from the knowledge of art, from the technique, from the things you often learn in art school. And I think that as a result of such a lack, their art can be limitless. I don’t like the English term 'outsider art' either, as you mentioned; it differentiates a kind of art from the art made by the 'insiders’. That being said, I fail to find a term that suits the Chinese expression. To me, 素人艺术 is very different from aboriginal art, folk art or naive art, even though some of these styles overlap. Aboriginal art/folk art, or peasant art, they all have a certain aesthetic standard, and rules to follow, but in the case of 素人艺术, there are simply no rules ...

How did you become interested in these types of artistic expressions? Why focus on the amateur characteristics of the artists involved? Does it resonate with contemporary Chinese art practice somehow?
I did my master’s thesis on ‘outsider art’; actually I have always been interested in it. I guess it all started with my contemporary art fatigue. I majored in Contemporary Art in the UK, and throughout the years in the field, I have seen so much bad contemporary art. Later, while doing research, I found out about the so-called ‘outsider art’ and I felt it was full of talent and creativity, and most importantly: it was sincere! After coming back to China, I worked as an Art Journalist for five years, and again, I ran into an art market 100 percent driven by terrible contemporary art and, because it was my job, I had to write about it. While I was between jobs, having some time off, I again picked up my old habit of Googling 'outsider art’ in China. Sometimes, I felt as if looking at ‘outsider art’ was a way to ‘cleanse my eyes.’

What happens if the amateur turns pro? Will he/she be automatically removed from the listings next year?
In the past four years, we had artists who became professional artists and have had regular shows, and are represented by galleries. Usually, they don’t want to be addressed under the term 素人艺术 anymore, and I think that is totally fine. 

Can visitors purchase the works? If so, does it operate like a regular gallery sale?
I would say 80 percent of the works are for sale, and yes, it operates like a regular gallery sale, but the price is more transparent. We upload all works on Weidian [微店, Weixin’s sales platform, ID: almostartproject] where you can easily see the price and purchase online. 

Has the festival transcend local grounds? If so, what sort of collaborations are you currently carrying out? And are there any that you're looking toward in the near future?
We have been invited to participate in exhibitions in France, USA, and Japan. Earlier this year, we participated in the Outsider Art Fair in New York, becoming the very first Chinese participants in their 26-year history. Sales went very well in NY and it is very encouraging to see how many people in the US are interested in Chinese outsider art. We will attempt to make our participation more regular and to go every year. Also, in Japan, four of our artists were chosen to partake in the Japan-China Art Brut exhibition.

Almost Art Project's fourth exhibition of outsider art begins on Jun 29 at the Tabula Rasa Gallery and Whitebox Art Center. Follow Almost Art Project on WeChat (ID: almostartproject) for more information.

Images courtesy of Almost Art Project