Esea contemporary facts for kids

esea contemporary, once known as the Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art, is a modern art gallery in Manchester, England. You can find it on Thomas Street in Manchester's lively Northern Quarter, inside a beautifully updated part of the old Smithfield Market Hall.

History of the Art Centre

Starting the Chinese Arts Centre (1986–1989)

Programme for the Chinese View '86 festival

The idea for what is now esea contemporary began in the late 1980s. At that time, many art movements focused on artists from African, Caribbean, or South Asian backgrounds. However, artists of Chinese heritage were often not included.

In the mid-1980s, Amy Lai, an artist and radio producer in Manchester, noticed there weren't many Chinese cultural events. She used her connections at a radio show called Eastern Horizon to organize Chinese View '86. This was a two-week festival celebrating Chinese culture. The festival aimed to help the local Chinese community connect with art and education. It also explored what Chinese cultural identity meant.

In June 1987, Amy Lai, along with Peter Chui, Jenny Clegg, and David Wong, started the Chinese View Arts Association (CVAA). This was a charity created to "advance the education of the public in all forms of Chinese culture." The CVAA organized cultural events across Manchester and northwest England. These events helped local artists of Chinese heritage and aimed to strengthen cultural identity. They also wanted to teach the wider public about Chinese life. Amy Lai believed these activities should be "open door, inclusive, and involved in the mainstream community."

The CVAA members also worried that young people of Chinese heritage born in the UK were not learning about traditional Chinese arts. To help with this, they decided to open a Chinese cultural centre. This centre would offer cultural activities for both the local community and the general public. It would promote an appreciation of "Chinese life, culture, philosophy, and values." It would also be a place for information and advice about Chinese culture in the region.

A Community Hub (1989–1992)

The CVAA opened the Chinese Arts Centre on October 21, 1989. It was located on the first floor of Frazer House, Charlotte Street, in Manchester's Chinatown. Diana, Princess of Wales officially opened the centre on January 17, 1990.

The centre's main goal was to bring together the local Chinese community in Manchester with other communities. Its educational programs helped promote Chinese culture. The centre offered art workshops led by artists like Mary Tang and Cathy Wu.

The centre also held exhibitions and events to showcase Chinese arts and culture. Before this, most "Chinese Arts" exhibitions in Manchester were put on by British collectors. The centre's early exhibitions featured local works and pieces from national and international artists. In 1992, the centre held its first big modern art exhibition, Beyond the Chinese Takeaway. This show explored the experiences of British Chinese artists from the second and third generations. The exhibition leaflet said it was the first of its kind to research new works by contemporary artists of Chinese origin living in Britain. It aimed to "challenge the stereotypes" of the Chinese community.

Changing Focus (1993–1996)

In 1993, a review found that the centre was not fully meeting its goals. Many thought the organization might close. So, in October 1993, the centre was relaunched with a new mission. It would now promote a wide range of traditional and modern art forms. Its art and education programs would help change how Chinese culture was seen in the UK. The organization also started to focus on helping new artists of Chinese heritage. As part of the relaunch, the centre organized city-wide events for Chinese New Year in 1994. These events took place at the centre and other venues. The centre also hosted the Journey's West exhibition.

In 1994, the CVAA started an arts worker training program. They also created activities for the local community. These steps helped with staffing and strengthened community ties. The new ways of working were tested between September 1995 and March 1996. During this time, the centre hosted part of the British Art Show 4 and its lunar new year activities. For the British Art Show, the centre displayed works by British artist Mat Collishaw. The centre's acting director, Kwong Lee, later said that the increased attention and the chance to be part of the art world made it worthwhile to show an artist who was not of Chinese heritage.

Around this time, the CVAA learned that their grant from the North West Arts Board (NWAB) would be cut by almost half for 1996–1997. It was clear the centre could not continue as it was. The CVAA Board began looking for a new location and a new leader. In June 1996, Sarah Champion became the centre's Arts Development Coordinator. Champion later said she had six months to make the centre successful or close it. The centre's new mission and goals were set. Five key areas were chosen: education, artist development, the Chinese community, art promotion, and advocacy.

A National Hub for Chinese Arts (1997–2003)

Sarah Champion became the director when the centre moved to new premises on Edge Street in Manchester's Northern Quarter in 1997. This was a time of big changes for the centre. New opportunities came from the government's focus on culture and growing interest in Chinese culture due to the upcoming Handover of Hong Kong. By moving away from Chinatown, the centre focused less on the local Chinese community. Instead, it focused more on modern art. Champion wanted the centre to become the main UK agency for Chinese arts and culture. The centre began operating as an agency in 1999. The charity was renamed Chinese Arts Centre Ltd in September 2000.

Artists based in the UK remained the main focus of the centre's exhibitions. At first, the centre showed solo exhibitions of existing works by artists like Adam Hongshan Wei and Anthony Key. They also hosted touring exhibitions, such as Nora Fok's Galaxies. After a fire in 1998, the venue was refurbished. The centre then started asking UK-based artists of East Asian heritage to create new works specifically for the space. Between 2000 and 2003, the New Commissions program featured eight exhibitions by rising artists. These included Suki Chan, Lisa Cheung, Gayle Chong Kwan, and Jiang Jiehong.

As part of its agency work, the centre expanded its educational workshops to a national audience. It also became a key contact for businesses and art organizations wanting to learn about Chinese culture. The centre started to contribute to discussions about Chinese arts. They organized conferences like A New Vocabulary for Chinese Arts? in London in 1998, and Contemporary Chinese Art in the International Arena at the British Museum in 2002.

The centre also began to connect with global artists. In 1997, Champion traveled to China to introduce the centre to international audiences. She also aimed to build partnerships with organizations in mainland China. As a result, the centre produced Representing the People (1999). This was its first major touring exhibition featuring works by artists from mainland China. It was created with the Courtyard gallery in Beijing. About 250,000 people saw the exhibition. It is considered one of the first independent UK exhibitions to show art from Mainland China. This was followed by a second touring show, Made in China (2001–2002), which displayed modern Chinese design.

In June 2001, the centre learned it had been accepted into the Arts Council of England's lottery program. This meant £2.1 million was set aside for the centre to buy and equip a new building. It also covered funding for the new venue's operations and marketing.

Chinese Art Centre on Thomas Street (2003–2013)

Chinese Art Centre on the left in 2008

The new venue on Thomas Street opened on November 28, 2003. This happened after the organization received a £2.2 million lottery grant from Arts Council England. The new building was designed by OMI Architects. It won a RIBA prize for architecture in 2004. It featured a large gallery, a teahouse, a shop, offices, a resource area, and a studio and living space for resident artists. The centre opened with a special artwork by New York-based artist, Xu Bing.

Sarah Champion said at the time that the organization stayed in the Northern Quarter because the centre represented "a younger British/Chinese and International Chinese artists who tend to produce much more contemporary work." She felt the venue was better placed in an "arts and cultural setting rather than a Chinatown setting."

Between 2005 and 2007, the centre worked with Live Art UK. They promoted the work of performance artists from China and the Chinese diaspora. As a result, the centre organized the China Live tour with Shu Yang, director of the DaDao Live Art Festival, Beijing. They also held the VITAL Festivals in 2006–2007. These festivals presented Live Art performances, film screenings, artist talks, and a conference. All these events featured performance artists from China and those of Chinese heritage.

Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art (2013–2020)

In October 2013, the Chinese Arts Centre changed its name to the Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art (CFCCA). This change showed the organization's new focus:

"future-facing organisation responding to China's growing cultural and economic influence".

During this time, the centre focused its programs on "The Chinese Century." This idea suggested that the 21st century would be shaped culturally and economically by China, not by Western countries.

In 2013, CFCCA partnered with the University of Salford to build a collection of Chinese Contemporary Art in Salford. This collection would include works by international artists. Curators from CFCCA and academics from the University of Salford helped develop it. In the same year, CFCCA strengthened its relationships with local and national government. This led to CFCCA being the launch venue for the Manchester China Forum. CFCCA's curator Ying Tan and the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, co-hosted the event. This event was seen as a way to bring Chinese investment into Manchester.

Becoming esea contemporary (2020–Present)

In early 2020, the centre faced public accusations of racism. Several artists also withdrew from exhibitions that year. Because of this, CFCCA started a 'Revisioning' project. This project aimed to help the organization improve and make positive changes. As part of this, CFCCA appointed a group of artists to help design the new organization. This group was made up of artists of East or Southeast Asian heritage. They included Enoch Cheng, Whiskey Chow, Yuen Ling Fong, Gayle Chong Kwan, Eelyn Lee, Erika Tan, and Jack Tan.

The artist working group was later dismissed after they raised concerns about racism within the organization. The centre then accused the artists' complaints of being harmful to white staff. The artists pointed out a concern previously raised by artist JJ Chan. This concern was that CFCCA normalized racism within its own organization and contributed to it being seen as normal in British society. Under new leadership, the organization rebranded as esea contemporary in 2023. The name refers to the term ESEA and shows its wider focus on art from diaspora communities. They announced new exhibits for 2023, which were the first since the centre closed in 2021.

Art Collections

Artworks

Since 2013, the centre has partnered with the University of Salford to create a collection of Chinese contemporary artworks. This collection is kept at the Salford Museum and Art Gallery.

Archive and Library

Thanks to funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the centre opened its library and archive to the public in 2018. The library holds publications about Chinese contemporary art. These include exhibition catalogues, books about individual artists, and festival publications. The archive contains records of the centre and its earlier names. It shows how the centre developed and its history of programs.

Artists Who Exhibited Here

• Cao Fei
• Carol Yinghua Lu
• Chen Man
• Chen Shaoxiong
• Chow Chun Fai
• Conroy Sanderson
• Ed Pien
• Gordon Cheung
• Lesley Sanderson
• Mad for Real
• He Chengyao
• Suki Chan
• Xu Bing