Above, the main gallery
boasts an original 6m-high
wooden beam ceiling
as well as new oak floors
Right, the 1,200 sq m gallery
is located on the top floor
of the 1937 Amber building,
a former warehouse on
Huqiu Road in the heart
of downtown Shanghaiinterior projects. ‘André understood what I was trying
to do with my Hong Kong gallery, even though he took
my drawings and immediately reversed the entire
design. Boom! It worked perfectly,’ says the gallerist.
According to Fu, the context is very diferent for
each of the three galleries he has created for Perrotin:
‘In Shanghai, the scale is much larger and we have
introduced a reception space that acts as a central hub,
creating a transition between four galleries that are
very diferent in size, personality and experience.’ Fu
worked closely with Perrotin’s team, translating their
spatial studies and the gallerist’s ‘dreamscape’. ‘I care
about every single detail,’ Perrotin explains. ‘When I
started in this business I did everything myself, even
painting the walls, so I learned it all.’Fu says the new gallery’s unconventional proportions,
high ceilings and natural light from large windows
ruled out the classic white cube response: ‘Some spaces
are more classic art spaces with a pure white ceiling,
while others have exposed beams, windows on one
side or a dialogue with another room. However, it all
has to act as one space with a sense of integrity. And
a bit of tension.’ The challenge, he says, was allowing
the gallery’s personality to shine, ‘but not too much’,
always bearing in mind that a gallery is ultimately
a backdrop for artists to express themselves.
An elevator opens directly onto the third-loor
gallery’s discreet reception space. ‘When you come out
you should immediately see an artwork,’ Perrotin
insists. ‘The irst impression has to be the art, not a
person or desk.’ Further in are two large rectangular
galleries, two smaller exhibition spaces, a storage room
and a new staircase leading to the mezzanine. Diferent
parquet loor patterns in each of the four exhibition
spaces evoke a traditional Shanghai residence, while,
elsewhere, metal window frames are a subtle nod to
French Concession-style windows. ‘It is not intended to
replicate traditional vernacular, but instead conceived
as a modern art space that relects on its historical
context through an immersive experience,’ Fu explains.
According to Fu, the greatest challenge was to
create a demarcation between the heritage timber and
high beams that give the place character, and the new,
open white box ‘insertion’ that ofers movement and
lexibility. When designing a project of this complexity,
he says there is no substitute for spending time on-site
and imagining what it will be like to look at works of
art of diferent types and sizes. ‘It is all about asking
yourself what if,’ he says. ‘You can’t predict or draw
without seeing the space yourself. You have to
physically be there to instinctively respond to it.’
Set on creating ‘a sense of comfort and the feeling
that you are in a considered environment’, Perrotin
also insisted on installing underloor heating, after
discovering that many art spaces are freezing cold
during Shanghai’s harsh winter months. ‘It is important
to create a personal relationship with clients,’ he
explains. ‘That includes having a space to sit and
discuss the art.’ He believes the new gallery will
provide a personal context in which to experience
art, especially since many of their artists create
new works for each show.
At Perrotin Shanghai, the layout means the gallery
retains a high degree of lexibility. ‘The diferent spaces
will challenge artists,’ Perrotin says. ‘We have to give
the artists an obligation to ight with the space.’ And
irst into battle is Belgium’s Wim Delvoye, with a new
body of work that relects his preoccupation with
combining the ‘profane with the sublime’. Known for
his unconventional works, Delvoye is familiar with
China, having had a studio in Shanghai and a farm that
supplied him with pigs, which he tattooed with logos
and patterns and whose skin he then sold as canvases.
The inaugural show (until 20 October) presents some
of these works, as well as new sculptures inspired by
the most popular instant noodles in China. November
will then see Takashi Murakami enter the ring with
his irst solo exhibition in mainland China, inspired by
contemporary Japan and its otaku sub-culture. It’s
clear that Perrotin is adding his own creative twist to
Shanghai’s cultural landscape, and it seems that visitors
and collectors will be the ultimate winners. ∂
Perrotin Shanghai, 3/F, 27 Huqiu Road, perrotin.com Interior photograph: Arch-ExistSmart Art
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