Leon Lai
A few days ago, I had an online interview with Lexïng Zhang. She’s a young Chinese curator based out of Mexico City and the owner of a gallery in Miami. She applies her unique talent and aesthetic as a curator. When I was looking at her work, I discovered each project special but distinct. That diversity is both regional—some of the artworks are from Asia, some of them are from Europe, and some of them are from North America—and physical. There are photographs, installation arts, oil paintings and board paintings. They all have an untouchable and unnamable quality in common. However, Lexing acutely hunts this feature, ignoring the border of design, traditional, and contemporary art, and displays it in her exhibitions.
Leon Lai: So, let’s just start. Let me introduce myself first. My name is Zhiqi Lai. You can call me Leon. I’m a student in UMBC studying for cinematic arts. What about you?
Wonderful. My name is Lexïng. I’m an artist agent, a curator and I’m now based in Mexico City.
Great. I want to ask, when did you want to be involved in arts? When did you start trying to be an artist or to be an art agent?
It started in 2009, 2010. When I first moved to Miami and there are a couple of reasons. I opened my gallery in 2010 and I had a business partner. At the same time, I was working for an Argentine lady and she is a collector. She was collecting contemporary Chinese art. And the other background is, in the past few decades, let’s say early 2000s, contemporary Chinese art was very trendy. You can find lots of auction records were all of Chinese artists. I’m from China, born and raised over there. I always was very interested in art, as my dad collects antiques. Also, I was studying abroad, and I was always reading the news about Chinese artists breaking the auction records. But I felt that those artworks were chosen in a way that’s more suitable to Western taste. Meaning there were a lot of Western characters into the work, and they took whatever they imagine that was more “Chinese contemporary art” to them.
As a Chinese, I felt there were so many other artists and artistic expressions that needed to be shown and deserve a larger audience rather than very overly politicized, such as the Mao portraits, which back then were very popular. That’s one reason I want to promote a different and broader expression of Chinese art. I had the help from my previous boss who was a collector and my business partner. We were able to get into a very good condition and quickly launched ourselves to start building a client base and a series of activities. It all started here.
Basically, you’re trying to break the stereotype on the Chinese artwork?
Yes, that was part of my intention. I wouldn’t say “break”, but I was trying my best to introduce more expressions into the field.
To make it diverse, right?
Yes.
Great. You just mentioned your father, he likes to collect the antiques. So, does this affect your interests in art? In other words, do you think your family encourages you to engage with art in some way?
When I look back, I think that was the only artistic influence in my family. It definitely helps. However, I was always interested in [art]. When I went to school in Shanghai and studied for my master’s degree in Paris, I was always going to galleries and museums. but I don’t think my dad affected me that much.
Can you tell me your major in college?
My major was economics, and a minor in art history.
What about your master’s degree in Paris?
I did a French business school, cultural and business management.
Oh, now I can tell how you could open a gallery!
Thank you!
Have you ever tried to be an artist instead of an artistic agent at some point?
No, not really. I’m pretty satisfied with being an intermediary. I’m pretty passionate about helping whoever is talented. I’m not limiting myself only to visual artists, for example, if I know some intelligent dancers or singers, I’m happy to help them and provide them a bigger platform. But myself, I really like helping other talents.
Do your parents support your career? Or are they against what you have chosen?
No. Most Chinese families are quite strict and conservative, including my family. I didn’t really get the major support from my parents, especially my dad. My mom was standing in the middle. On the other hand, my dad wanted me to work for some company on the Fortune 500 and have a regular nine to five job. That’s why I chose economics to be my major. My art career was my own decision.
Gotcha. I totally understand and agree with you. I was born in China. When I tried to transfer my major from computer science to cinematic art, my family and I had some arguments. Finally, they were trying to accept that. Also, I’m trying to show them what I can do with this major and to live up to that.
Absolutely.
Let me ask you a cliché question. As a woman, do you think you encounter any issues, like sexism, while you were building your career?
I never feel that way. A lot of people were generous, especially when I first moved to Miami and was starting out with a gallery. I think people around me saw this young, Chinese girl who wanted to start a gallery and wanted to promote a different voice. Everyone was very generous and delightful. But maybe my environment’s pretty independent. It wasn’t like a corporate environment. There were always bureaucrats.
That’s great. Because I talked to some of my friends, they are majoring in marketing. They had a lot of issues because of their sexuality and gender.
Oh, I see.
You said you were in France. So, have you ever thought about staying in France and opening a gallery?
Yes, but not about the gallery. I’m actually planning on moving back to Europe in September. After I finished my master’s degree in France, I wanted to explore more of the world and that’s why I was applying for positions abroad. And the original reason brought me to Miami was I accepted an offer to work for a consulting firm. Then I arrived in the United States. I wasn’t planning on staying in the US for a long time in the beginning. but one thing led to another. I have been here for many years and opened my own business. Now, I am planning on moving back to Europe. Now I tend to be a curator and work on individual projects rather than open a traditional gallery.
And you were saying right now you’re in Mexico City.
Yes.
Do you have any specific reason to be there?
I don’t know if you have been here in Mexico City. If you have been, you will understand immediately. It is very vibrant, and the culture is extremely rich. I feel very inspired. I was really missing the urban cultural environment that I had. So, coming to Mexico City reminded me of the days living in Europe. I really enjoy it. It’s a very nice experience, something I always appreciate. Mexico City is really wonderful. Some of the cinema scenes that you might be interested in… real life here is a movie.
Gotcha. I will try that. You mentioned the pandemic, and it caused us lots of trouble. Do you have any trouble, especially with your gallery?
Yes, of course. I think everyone is experiencing lots of difficulties because it’s completely changing our lives. Traditional businesses are all broken down. In the beginning, I was very stressed, because we depend on a lot of physical showcases, meetings, and interactions. Seeing all the art fairs being canceled. It used to be a very big income for all the galleries and people working in the art world. However, I think it’s a good transition because it’s actually something that I always wanted to do because I want it to be away from showcases and fairs that are event driven sales per se. Meaning that I was able to establish quite a few new collaborations with either design platforms or other galleries. They wouldn’t be showcasing and representing the designer in galleries that I work with. And I’m the, again, intermediary between them. Last January, I curated a show in Shanghai. In the beginning I was very sad because the pandemic first broke out in China around Chinese New Year. All our efforts were put on hold. But then China was able to come back to normal and everything has been working fine since last May. Galleries were able to reopen their shows and add clients and sales. I was able to move the show from Shanghai to Beijing and then plugged it in with a few clients and galleries. So, I’m doing more collaborations and diversification. Those are two things that helped me navigate through the pandemic.
Sounds like you overcame everything! Thanks for your time!
Yes… lots of people are still dealing with it. You’re welcome, and good luck with your studies and your projects!