The water town of Wuzhen will hold the first International Contemporary Art Exhibition from March 27. [Photo/China Daily]

As a well-known tourist site in East China's Zhejiang province, Wuzhen is often in the headlines - either for the World Internet Conference or for its theater festival.

But now, the water town is embracing contemporary art by holding its first International Contemporary Art Exhibition beginning March 27.

The exhibition will display works by 40 influential artists from 15 countries and regions, including famous names like "the grandmother of performance art" Marina Abramovic, Damien Hirst, the father of the Rubber Duck Florentijn Hofman, Bill Viola and Araki Nobuyoshi.

The works on show cover installations, sculptures, videos, performance art, photos, paintings and sound art.

It will run through June 26.

"The event will be either a biennial or triennial one. It's the first time for a small town in China to hold such a large-scale exhibition with so many star artists from across the globe," says curator Feng Boyi.

Usually, biennial or triennial events are held in big cities in China like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. However, this event in the water town of Wuzhen can be seen as an attempt by a small town in China to attract art resources, says Feng.

Feng says that as many of the artists are creating works specially for this show they can make them blend with the ancient architecture of the water town.

For instance, visual artist Ann Hamilton will create an installation to be placed on a traditional grand stage that is hundreds of years old. Florentijn Hofman, whose Rubber Duck has toured the world, will also create a work for Wuzhen.

Among the 40 artists, half of them are Chinese including Xu Bing, Sui Jianguo, Ai Weiwei and Liu Jianhua.

Sui, a top sculptor in China, visited Wuzhen in October to think about his work for the show. His work will be displayed in a deserted silk factory in the northern part of Wuzhen. The silk factory was built in 1970 and it was then a major industry in the town.

"The silk factory is an old memory of the town. I like it. It's much the same with the 789 art zone in Beijing," says Sui, who grew up in a factory area and now owns a studio in 798, the biggest art district in Beijing, which has been created using old factories.

The exhibition will be in two areas: the silk factory area and the tourist area that is known for its ancient houses along the river, which have East China's traditional garden-style architecture.

About 21 artists like Sui have so far visited Wuzhen to draw inspiration for the contemporary art show. Oliver Hirring, who is one of those who visited, stayed in the water town for more than a month.

Hirring plans to use performance art in Wuzhen, part of his global participatory performance art that focuses on impromptu actions and reactions.

"I find it very interesting to apply my art to Wuzhen. The circumstances and environment is very different. It's a productive period for me," says the German-American multimedia artist.

Given that visitors to the exhibition will mostly be tourists, the organizers have invited well-known and popular artists from around the world, says Feng. The works that are exhibited should be easily accepted and understood by the public.

"The exhibition will be held regularly, just like Wuzhen's theater festival and World Internet Conference. But, for the first year, we want big names to attract more tourists," says Feng.

Philip Tinari, the director of the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing and also a member of the Wuzhen International Contemporary Art Exhibition's arts council, says that with smaller cities following the museum boom in China, experiencing art at various venues will get popular. "More ordinary people will go to a place to experience art and this kind of experience is a good way for art itself to reach more people," says Tinari.