Welcome to 798district.com
798 Art District is located in the Dashanzi area, to the northeast of
central Beijing. It is the site of state-owned factories including
Factory 798, which originally produced electronics. Beginning in 2002,
artists and cultural organizations began to divide, rent out, and
re-make the factory spaces, gradually developing them into galleries,
art centers, artists' studios, design companies, restaurants, and bars.
It became a "Soho-esque" area of international character, replete with
"loft living," attracting attention from all around. Bringing together
contemporary art, architecture, and culture with a historically
interesting location and an urban lifestyle, "798" has evolved into a
cultural concept, of interest to experts and normal folk alike,
influential on our concepts of both urban culture and living space. 798
stands for much more than a three digit number: in Beijing these numbers
symbolize the country's cutting edge art movement led by the Chinese
vanguard, unchained artistic personalities with alternative life goals.
The largest, most influential art district in China - the 798 - hosts
world-class international and Chinese exhibitions in the midst of former
weapons factories. The number of visitors to the 798 Art District
reached as high as 75 million.
About the Founder of 798district.com
Martin Flynn has been an avid explorer since childhood and has been
involved with art and artists since his maturity. This early immersion
in the art world, together with his urge to discover and collect (two of
the driving forces in Martin Flynn's life) brought him to painting in
the early 80's: when he explored America. America had always been a
dream destination for him and hollywood, his fantasy world. His
discovery of the United States was definitely the decisive outburst of
his artistic career.
Ai Wei Wei
Ai Weiwei, (born 1957, Beijing) is a leading Chinese artist, curator,
architectural designer, cultural and social commentator and activist. Ai
is known for the design of the Beijing National Stadium, more commonly
known as the "Bird's Nest", the main stadium of the 2008 Olympic Games
in Beijing. Beginning with the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, Ai has emerged
as one of China's most influential bloggers and social activists; he is
known for his tongue-in-cheek and sometimes vulgar social commentary,
and has had frequent run-ins with Chinese authorities. He was
particularly focused at exposing an alleged corruption scandal in the
construction of Sichuan schools that collapsed during the earthquake.
Born in Beijing, his father was Chinese poet Ai Qing, who was denounced
during the Cultural Revolution and sent off to a labor camp in Xinjiang
with his wife, Gao Ying. Ai Weiwei also spent five years there. Ai
Weiwei is married to artist Lu Qing. Ai Weiwei is represented by Galerie
Urs Meile, Beijing-Lucerne.
Accessed 13 January 2015
