This Friday, students began their exploration of all of the arts and cultural opportunities that are in the expansive and dynamic city of Beijing through an all-studio field trip to the world-famous cultural district located only a few minutes from CAFA; 798, or Qi Jiao Ba, in Mandarin.

As our first module is Visual Research, before leaving for the field trip, students were introduced to various methods of collecting information that will be invaluable to them as they complete creative work, and were encouraged to start practicing these methods upon their arrival to 798.

Students were curious about the intentions of Zhao Bandi  at UCCA’s (Ullens Center for Contemporary Art) exhibition China Party, while others were mesmerized by the videos at Cold Nights. Many students were intent reading the exhibition descriptions and asking questions about things they found odd or interesting. Several took detailed photographs of the work, such as Zhao Bandi’s costumes.

Lecturer and Head of Studio David Yeung spent time explaining to students interested in fashion the difference between ready-to-wear, couture and costume work, while Lecturer Mary Johnson spoke to a group of interested students about the connections between Bandi’s aesthetic choices and conceptual intentions in his early 1990’s paintings.

After spending the first hour exploring UCCA, several students took a coffee break but also used the time to record plant life and art-goers passing by the café and implemented their newly learned “artists’ habits”.  Others set off to become lost amongst the labyrinth lik&

101; paths of the post industrial district and find new inspiration.