The Annual Exhibition of Chinese Contemporary Art (Shanghai) 2025 has recently officially opened at the Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art and will run through October 11. This marks the seventh consecutive year that the China Modern Art Archive (CMAA) and the Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art have joined forces to bring this nationwide research achievement in contemporary art to Duolun Road, creating a vital window in northern Shanghai for observing China’s contemporary art scene across the country.
As the core exhibition platform showcasing research outcomes of the Annual of Chinese Contemporary Art, the annual exhibition adopts an annual curatorial framework that combines archival documentation with original artworks. It systematically documents, organizes and presents the annual landscape of contemporary art in China. Built on the 2025 survey findings of the Annual of Chinese Contemporary Art, this edition reviews the trajectories of artistic creation and the art ecosystem across China over the past year, capturing emerging phenomena and themes within the sector. Situated in the historic and cultural precinct of Duolun Road, the exhibition serves as a cutting-edge outpost for examining the evolution of Chinese contemporary art.
Founded in 1986, the China Modern Art Archive (CMAA) has long dedicated itself to collecting, organizing and researching documents of modern and contemporary Chinese art. As of 2025, twenty volumes of the Annual of Chinese Contemporary Art have been compiled. A digital transformation was launched last year, integrating artificial intelligence to explore innovative models of electronic publishing. The research team extends field investigations directly into artists’ studios, moving beyond mere documentation of exhibition events to focus on ongoing, dynamic creative practices, bringing archival research closer to live art production.
A total of 103 artists or artist collectives have been selected for this year’s annual volume. Extensive archival materials fully illustrate their creative practices throughout 2025. Original works by 12 artists — Cao Shu, Fei Jun, Hu Xiangcheng, Jiang Zhi, Li Qing, Qiu Anxiong, Shi Zheng, Yan Jiacheng, Yao Qingmei, Ye Linghan, Zhang Ding and Zhao Zhao — are on display at the Duolun galleries. The interplay between archival records and tangible originals offers visitors an experience rich in academic depth and visual impact.
During the exhibition run, the Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art will host a series of academic seminars and public education programmes. Diverse exchanges revolving around annual archive research will bridge academic scholarship and public art education, amplify the public influence of contemporary art in Hongkou, and meet residents’ spiritual and cultural needs through high-quality artistic offerings.
Guided by the Hongkou District Culture and Tourism Bureau of Shanghai, the exhibition is jointly organized by the China Modern Art Archive (CMAA) of Peking University, the Institute of Contemporary Art at Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, the Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art, the Wu Zuoren International Fine Arts Foundation, and the 798 Art Committee. Rooted in Hongkou’s profound cultural heritage and supported by the public academic platform of the Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art, the exhibition transforms national-level archival research achievements into a public art feast accessible to local citizens. It helps Hongkou strengthen its contemporary art cultural brand and continuously enrich the integrated development of culture, tourism and business across the district.