Born to be a pioneer – Understanding life through the lens

New media is usually associated with young artists who have grown up in an electronic culture. But for the past decade, Wang Jianwei, recently 53, has been exploring the new worlds of video installation and modern sculpture.

Road to fame – Young artists rise through competition

If looking at sales alone, the contemporary art scene seems short on new blood. Fashioning themselves “art agents,” China’s curators and galleries are taking up the challenge of discovering and promoting the next generation of young artists.

Quest for quiet – Modern dance based on a novel and a trip

Lin knew well the difficulties involved in running a modern dance company. He had read the diaries of the maestros Martha Graham and George Balanchine, both of whom saw their companies disbanded and rebuilt many times over.

Creating a new theater – A producer’s stand against commercialization

The emerging theaters and live houses of recent years do not reflect the quality of their creations and their potential to draw audiences.

Charting the uncharted – Chinese couple’s experiences in Brazilian culture

With the 2014 World Cup bound for Rio de Janeiro and the Olympics in 2016, many Chinese people are looking to Brazil for business and travel. But the tropical, multicultural country has more to offer than coffee, soccer and dancing.

Out of the shadows – Documentary tackles HIV discrimination

Despite government campaigns and awareness efforts on World AIDS Day, HIV remains a serious taboo. The discrimination remains so intense that many potential carriers refuse blood tests and hide their suspicions from friends and family alike.

Dance of a dark soul – 50-year-old Japanese performing art seeks revival

Butoh is an enigma. Born in Japan 50 years ago as a new form of physical expression, it has since overturned conventional concepts of dance.

Stories of a barren land – Villagers’ struggle a triumph of the spirit

Xihaigu, a mountainous area in the south of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, is one of China’s poorest regions and one pitied by UNESCO as one of the world’s most unlivable places.

Critics weigh in – The best and worst in the year’s contemporary art

Insults are an art critic’s bread and butter, because criticism is more precious than praise to the continued development of contemporary art.

Down the stream of civilization – Twelve episodes document two majestic palaces

“A living civilization creates; a dying builds museums,” the German-born American physician Martin H. Fischer once said.