The exhibition’s title, Saudade, is a near-untranslatable Portuguese word. It expresses a feeling of melancholy and yearning for something beautiful and irretrievable from one’s past; however, it is also often used when speaking of present circumstances. When Portugal led the Age of Exploration, it launched a new era of exchange between China and the West, and a program of globalization with trade and cultural exchange as its dominant paradigm. People aspired to earn recognition through the exchange, seeking out the future by tracing history. This exhibition of Chinese and Portuguese contemporary art, organized by the Fosun Foundation, is a completely new interpretation of what cultural exchange might mean in the new era.

 

The exhibition conjectures that the collision of artistic thought from two historically linked countries allows us to both reflect on history and look to the future. It offers completely new perspectives on how to understand and consider the self against a larger backdrop of rapid development, globalization, urbanization, and the clashes and integrations of multiculturalism.

 

 

About Fosun Foundation Shanghai
Located in the Bund Finance Center, Fosun Foundation Shanghai is a non-profit organization founded by the Fosun Group and the Fosun Foundation in November 2016. The centre is designed by British design firm Foster + Partners and creative director Heatherwick Studio. The building features three layers of moving veils in appearance. Its core mission is threefold: to promote contemporary art, connect China with international cultural systems, and foster public engagement with, understanding of, and participation in global contemporary art. Through its exhibitions and public programs, the centre also offers Chinese artists an international-calibre platform to feature their work. Its roof houses the large-scale spatial installation Counter Sky Garden by renowned Japanese artist Tatsuo Miyajima, which is also part of the Foundation’s permanent collection.