UCCA Beijing

UCCA Tenth Anniversary Gala

2017.11.5

On November 5, 2017, the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art held its Tenth Anniversary Gala under the banner “A Decade of History, A Future for Art,” celebrating UCCA’s contributions to Chinese contemporary art since its founding in 2007. Among the 477 guests attending the Gala were members of the UCCA Patrons Council, artists, supporting partners, curators, gallerists, celebrities, and UCCA’s management team. Thanks to the generosity of supporters, the Benefit Auction raised a total of RMB 9,485,000, a significant portion of the night’s proceeds.
This year’s Gala would not have been possible without support from Red Star Macalline Group and its subsidiary, GLORY CASA.

The UCCA Gala and Benefit Auction 2015

The UCCA Gala and Benefit Auction 2014

The UCCA Gala and Benefit Auction 2013

The UCCA Gala 2012

Event Gallery

Event Gallery

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Unlike in previous editions of the Gala, UCCA’s own team curated the Tenth Anniversary Gala, creating several short videos documenting important moments in UCCA’s “Decade of History,” and using black, white and gold to highlight the Center’s vision of “A Future for Art.” In addition to choreographed performances, the Gala Banquet featured a menu designed by Four Seasons Hotel, baijiu from Blue Moutai, and wine from Chandon and Wine to China. UCCA partnered with Zai Art APP and Panda TV to live-stream the entire event, and with V.Photos to provide a downloadable photo stream to guests who were unable to attend.

The Tenth Anniversary Gala had two core segments—the Gala Banquet and the Benefit Auction. During the auction, organized with the help of Christie’s, guests bid for ten artworks donated by renowned artists, as well as three pieces of Gufram furniture donated by GLORY CASA. Ultimately, Zhao Bandi’s China/America/Tian Feiyu sold for RMB 2,000,000, the highest hammer price of the night. The proceeds from the auction added up to RMB 9,485,000, all of which will be used to support UCCA’s exhibits and public programs, and to ensure the institution’s long-term growth.

The Banquet was the first of many Tenth Anniversary-themed events. UCCA Studio has released a series of related children’s art activities and reintroduced classic workshops that accompanied previous landmark exhibits, bringing the magic of art to even more children. UCCASTORE and Dorm by UCCASTORE have also released a set of “UCCA Tenth Anniversary Gala” gift bundles, containing design pieces, books, and exhibition-related memorabilia.

UCCA Gala 2018 will be held November 4, 2018. For sponsorship, table reservation, or more information, please contact Christina You: christina.you@ucca.org.cn or +86 10 5780 0293.

Speeches

UCCA Director Philip Tinari: “This is a house built on one big dream, the dream that, through contemporary art and culture, China can better understand the world, and the world can better understand China. And in the face of the transformations of the past decade, we see the urgency of what we do with ever greater clarity.

“UCCA is now preparing to enter a new era of our own. With new ownership comes new expertise, new structures, new modes of governance. And if the first decade of UCCA has been about bringing China into the contemporary art conversation, the second will be about bringing contemporary art to millions and millions of people in China. In the next year we will be introducing a wide range of new initiatives—from a vastly reinvigorated effort to connect with our visitors in physical and digital space, to major new exhibitions, to a physical renovation of this incredible building, to a real nonprofit foundation that will allow us to expand our public remit and deepen our community commitment.”

UCCA Founder, Guy Ullens: “From the moment I established UCCA, I and many other people have been working hard to make UCCA into what it is today. In the previous ten years, we have have made over 300 transatlantic journeys. After living through all these years, I can finally enjoy retirement. I would like to offer my congratulations to UCCA and to contemporary Chinese art—I am sure that they will do better and better.”

Red Star Macalline Group Vice-chairman, Red Star Macalline GLORY CASA General Manager, Andy Liu: “Humans are animals, yet more than animals, because we think and have an aesthetic sensibility. Where would we be without our aesthetic guides, our artists? China’s transition from a wealthy country to a classy one means we need a spiritual culture to match our material one. We need to thank our artists for pouring their hearts and dreams into their art, giving us a feast for our eyes and bodies. For years, we have been collaborating with UCCA, and I hope in the future we can continue our artistic dialogue and create a deeper aesthetic space.”

Special Thanks to

Chief Sponsor: GLORY CASA
GLORY CASA is a subsidiary of Red Star Macalline Group. Headquartered in Europe, it is the first retail chain to provides top-quality imported furniture to Chinese consumers. It has over 88 Italian furniture subsidiary brands, with products that include home furniture, workspace furniture, outdoor furniture, art furniture, pet furniture, lighting equipment, decorations, mattress and bed accessories, scented oils, fur products, fireplaces, fine art, and other products to furnish homes and workplaces, with styles that include classical, neoclassical, modern, postmodern, contemporary, art, as well as custom-made and children’s styles.

UCCA’s strategic media partner for the Gala was Modern Media Group and its subsidiary publications, Modern Weekly, Leap, The Art Newspaper China, InStyle Modern Lady, IDEAT Contemporary Life, and Bloomberg Businessweek China gave media support. UCCA’s strategic urban marketing partner was Focus Media and its exclusive design media partner was Wallpaper* Chinese. The Benefit Auction was presented in collaboration with Christie’s. Helu-Trans (Beijing) provided shipping support for the artwork, and AXA ART Asia Limited provided insurance for it. Tonight’s menu was designed by the Four Seasons Hotel, and the baijiu was courtesy of Blue Moutai. Drinks were also provided by Wine to China and Chandon. American company PRG provided technical support for tonight’s multimedia performances, Polaroid Originals gave photo support, Action Media was responsible for film production, and Modernsky provided live performance support. Gift bags were courtesy of Beijing Funye Food Technology Co. Ltd, and of IQAir, guaranteeing clean air. Skyroam and Gufram provided special support. Huiyiguanjia provided the registration system.

Artists who donated artworks to the Benefit Auction, in alphabetical order: Elmgreen and Dragset, Liu Wei, Liu Xiaodong, Qiu Zhijie, Wang Xingwei, Xu Bing, Xu Zhen, Zhan Wang, Zhao Bandi, Zhao Gang

Gala featuring music by Stefan Goldmann, Detz and KOAN Sound

Table Support

This year’s Gala Banquet received table support from the following institutions or individuals:

Director’s Tables

CINDY CHAO The Art Jewel, Mr. Jack Chen, BEIJING DSH AUTO CO., LTD, Gladstone Gallery, Hauser & Wirth, Mr. Adrien Cheng, FRONT International Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art and Michelle Shan and Lisson Gallery, Zero2IPO Group

Anniversary Tables

Runbao Technology Co. Ltd, GALLERIA CONTINUA, Long March Space, Tang Contemporary Art, Christie’s, KWM ARTCENTER, LAL Capital, Lévy Gorvy Gallery, Galerie Urs Meile, MadeIn Company, Magician Space, neugerriemschneider, SadieColesHQ, Mr. Sha Ye, Triumph Gallery, Pearl Lam Galleries

Other Tables

Mr. Qiao Zhibing, Almine Rech Gallery, Lehmann Maupin Gallery, Marian Goodman Gallery, Edouard Malingue Gallery, Michael Werner Gallery, Massimo De Carlo, Murphy & Partners, Ren Space, David Zwirner

Program Sponsors:

The UCCA Tenth Anniversary Gala introduced a new, easy donation model, allowing everyone to participate in securing the future of our exhibitions, public programs, and community outreach efforts. The following institutions made generous donations to UCCA:

Dior, White Space, Mr. Zhao Kailong, Mr. Jack Chen, Mr. Chou Haoran, Ms. Aria Chen, Mr. Dou Wei, Mr. Tian Jun, Mr. Zheng Yingcong, Ms. Fan Ni