As one of the most recognizable gallerists in the world, Peal Lam is known for pushing the boundaries of art, mainly Chinese contemporary and abstract art culture. She is known for single-handedly changing the concept of the Chinese art landscape not only in the country but also among the Western aficionados of art. Gone are the days when the Western art puritans thought that Chinese abstract art was copied or influenced by European and American art. The penultimate goal is to not only push the boundaries of how the art of the non-Western culture is understood by the former but also challenge the homogeneity that the Western art world has forced on the rest of the world.
Pear Lam: The Powerhouse of China’s Art World
The journey to challenge Western art and promote Chinese paintings and culture through art started way back, even before 2005, when Pearl Lam opened her eponymous art gallery, ‘Pearl Lam Gallery,’ in Shanghai. It began with her pop-up exhibitions and curiosity to fill the learn and fill gaps between contemporary Chinese art and traditional paintings. The result has been promoting artists who have not found a place in the coveted art galleries like Mr Doodle. Pearl Lam is the sole representative of his artwork and has displayed his work at the coveted Hong Kong Art Basel.
But the journey doesn’t end here; Lam is all about embracing the new with Mr. Doodle’s NFT (non-fungible token) artwork, The Living Doodle. The reason Lam gives for promoting new artists who do not conform to the ‘idea’ of ‘art’ put forth by the Western world is that art is without boundaries. Just like culture evolves and does not stay stagnant, art evolves, and that is the position Lam needs to encourage these new artists. There is a demand for virtual art because it expresses the present generation and the cultural shift happening worldwide.
Peal Lam: A Female Icon and Entrepreneur Digs Deeper Into The Art World
In a recent podcast where Rebecca Jones interviewed Lam, she said that for centuries now, the West has not only homogenized by hegemonized the art world. They described the concept of art, but it is time to break free from not only the colonialism of culture. The result is the rise of Alayo Akinkugbe and her Instagram page, ‘A Black History of Art.’
Pearl Lam interviewed Alayo, and they came to the consensus that the West has, for long, painted the art of Africa and Asia with a single brush stroke. Instead, within Africa, and for instance, Nigeria (where Alayo) is from, there are different and varied forms of painting and art. Just like Lam says about Chinese art, their contemporary art is not rooted in the Western concept of modernism or post-modernist art form but rather a heritage of the past, a confluence of different cultures and religions.
The outcome is Pearl Lam traveling the world to understand other art forms, paintings, and the culture they are rooted in. She went to Nigeria for five days to learn about Nigerian art, artists, and painters and is now considering promoting them.
Pearl Lam, Owner Of Pearl Lam Galleries’ Belief
As a prominent female entrepreneur, Pearl Lam wants to put new artists into the global platform, where their passports should not determine their art. Rather, the art and the artist should have the stage for the viewers to decide on their work.
Instead, Pearl Lam interviewed Alayo, and they came to the consensus that the West has, for a long, painted the art of Africa and the Asia with a single brush stroke.
