Seamless effort

Some are trying to merge the past and present in a more seamless way.

Zhu Qiang, director of the Jinji Lake Art Museum, in the historic city of Suzhou in eastern China, says: "We sit within Suzhou's industrial park, the creative core of the city. And from time to time we serve our audience with a show that gives a nod to history in a totally unexpected way."

In saying that he is referring specifically to the works of Peng Wei, famous for her unlikely and often time-warping combinations of various traditional Chinese cultural symbols and images.

Gao, director of the Today Art Museum, says that in terms of the public appreciation of contemporary art, he does not expect any instant breakthrough.

"When I decided to be a contemporary art museum director, a professor of mine urged me to think twice. 'You might be showing works that you don't like at all,' he said," Gao recalls. "It's true that I may not like what an artist does. But if he or she is serious with art making, I'm going to give the person a chance to be seen. That's the attitude of contemporary art.

"And when a viewer walks into our gallery, perhaps just by happenstance, I hope he or she encounters the best of us."

Wu, the flame-keeper of China's most prestigious art museum, still remembers vividly a chilly winter morning more than 20 years ago when he, a wide-eyed art student, arrived at the front gate of the museum, after traveling more than 1,500 kilometers by overnight train.

"It was about 4 am, and the museum opened at 9 am. So for five hours I battled the coldness, cheering myself up by thinking about what was inside that I was about to see. Art is the fuel and the flint for the fire that warms our heart."