Tokyo-based gallery NANZUKA has unveiled a new space in China. Located in Shanghai’s Pudong New District, the NANZUKA ART INSTITUTE was driven by the desire to strengthen cultural exchange between the two nations, as well as cultivate a growing sector of Chinese youth within the arts.
The newly minted 4,593-square-foot space will operate as a museum, rather than just a gallery, enlisting a wide array of artists that go beyond NANZUKA’s roster, which includes Hajime Sorayama, Haroshi and James Jarvis. NANZUKA recently provided a teaser to its new location with a reflective robot sculpture that Sorayama specially designed towards the entrance of THE SUMMIT Tower #1, which houses the institution and a suite of office spaces and cultural hotspots.
The inaugural exhibition ETERNAL LIFE will feature an eclectic line up of works separated by time periods and cultures, including a mechanical clock tower by the 11th century Chinese scientist Su Song, Osamu Tezuka’s Astro Boy, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and a femme bot by Sorayama — the latter of which will showcase a solo exhibition at NANZUKA ART INSTITUTE in 2025.
“Eternal life is the endless dream of humanity that transcends race and national borders,” wrote NANZUKA in a statement. “It is because death is inevitable that we have attempted to depict life in all its vividness, and for both scientists and artists, the ambition to “create life” is a grand mission that they are destined to undertake. Currently, in the year 2024, we humans are taking on the challenge of creating eternal life using advanced engineering and computer technology, as well as virtual reality and artificial intelligence. This can indeed be seen as a moment in which the innocent imagination of humankind serves as a momentum in driving reality.”
ETERNAL LIFE will open on November 6.
NANZUKA ART INSTITUTE
Pudong New District, Shanghai
