Lorenz Helbling, Shanghart Gallery founding director, emerges at ArtReview's Power 100 list
2006-10-30 12:47

For the fifth year running the international art magazine ArtReview releases its list of the 100 most influential people in contemporary art. A silent panel of respected writers, critics and curators spread across the globe has compiled this year's ArtReview Power 100.

The annual list of 100 most powerful in the contemporary art scene features collectors, museum directors, artists and dealers.

 

French collector Francois Pinault, owner of Gucci and Christie's, leads the Art Power list, while Larry Gagosian, who owns five galleries around the world, is second. Nicholas Serota, head of Tate Modern in London is third, followed by Glenn Lowry, director of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The growing importance of art fairs is underlined by the presence of Samuel Keller, who runs the Art Basel event, at number five in the list. Also included are figures such as artists Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons, and curators Hans Ulrich Obrist and Hou Hanru.

 

Among the honorees is also Lorenz Helbling who initiated ShanghART Gallery in 1996, and which has since grown to become one of China's most influential contemporary art institutions. Born in Switzerland, Helbling studied History, Chinese and Art History at Zurich University, Zurich, and Fudan University, Shanghai in the 80's. After working in a gallery in Hong Kong in the early 90's Helbling relocated to Shanghai where he established ShanghART. The gallery was the first independent gallery for contemporary art in Shanghai.

 

Being recognized for its importance ShanghART became the initial gallery from China participating in major international art fairs like Art Basel and Fiac, Paris. Since its inauguration the gallery has established more than 70 exhibitions, and it enjoys the great respect of being among the 75 international galleries selected in Dumont’s publication 'International Art Galleries’ that features the most acclaimed galleries from post-war to post-millennium (2005).

 

In conjunction with ShanghART's participation at the prestigious Art Basel Miami Beach art fair in December, the gallery launches a new publication. The publication presents a comprehensive overview of Helbling's pioneering achievements in dealing with contemporary Chinese art.

 

ShanghART Gallery currently celebrates its 10^th anniversary with a wide range of exhibitions of the more than 30 artists represented. Upcoming shows include Pu Jie We are the Newcomers, We are the Future (Oct. 19^th - 31^st) and Yang Zhenzhong Foreplay (Nov. 5^th – 29^th).

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