West still determines views and value of Asian contemporary art, editor says
Teiya Iwabuchi, whose magazine covers art in East Asia for regional and international readerships, notes rise in events and gallery openings and growing global interest in Asian and Middle Eastern art
Teiya Iwabuchi, editor-in-chief of Japanese art magazine Bijutsu Techo, believes Asian art has come into its own and no longer needs the West to endorse its value for its future growth and development. SCMP.com caught up with him ahead of Art Basel Hong Kong.
Today, even though Asian contemporary art is getting more attention and recognition, collections and exhibitions of this genre are still few and far between, especially when compared with how Western contemporary art is collected and shown in the United States and Europe.
At the moment, the value of Asian contemporary art is still very much determined by how it performs in the market. This is both its strength and weakness, in that its value is mostly market-driven.
In our latest issue [to be launched at Art Basel Hong Kong], we feature three different movements [Gutai, Mono-ha from Japan and Dansaekhwa from Korea] that form part of the current art trend; these styles are at the heart of the market at the moment.
Things are changing, with major art events in the region such as the Gwangju Biennale and the recent opening of the National Gallery Singapore. The development of Asian contemporary art has started to pick up pace.
What is your view on the relationship between art and money today?
