The curatorial premise for the 3rd Independent Art Spaces is part feeling, part idea: Periods of change hold distinctive creative potential. When it comes to the city of Beijing, it is a morphing environment whose only constant is its inevitable transformation. The question for artists, curators, cultural practitioners then is: To what extent do we see art as merely reflective, illustrative, or representative of its specific cultural and sociopolitical context, rather than endowed with the capacity to transcend difference and engage critically with change, readapt, redesign, or influence change?

Warped, fragmented and endlessly repeated. Responses to the urban experience have ranged from unbridled enthusiasm for these vibrant hubs of glittering prosperity to examinations of the psychological shadows of city living: alienation, anxiety, tension and fear. The current status of global cities is marked by new geographies and social relations molded by advancing technologies and economic systems. How do contemporary artists respond to these conditions? 

Independent Art Spaces 2017 will display experimental strategies and playful interactions that create new stories. It is not necessarily a place for experts, nor for clear questions and answers, but rather an open forum for innovative, untested approaches to cities and their inhabitants and the solidarity in between. 

Organized by:
I: project space and the IAS network

Special thanks to:
Sasha Fominskaya, LAVA Design Beijing and Sun Chang

第三届”独立艺术空间”的策展出发点是半感受半概念：变化的时期会激发出独到的创作潜能。当这发生在北京时，这个变化多端的情形唯一持续不变的就是它那无法避免地改变。而对于艺术家，策展人，文化实践者的问题是：在怎样的程度上我们才能把艺术看做是对特定文化和社会政治语境下的反射、阐明或表现；而不是被赋予能逾越差异，或是批判地参与到改变、再适应、再设计甚至是影响到已发生的变化的能力？

扭曲、瓦解以及无穷尽地重复。城市经历着从璀璨繁荣的炙热点上放荡的狂热，到都市生活心理压力的考验：隔阂、焦虑、 紧张以及恐惧。当下全球的城市状态是由先进的科技和经济系统制定下的全新的地理和社会关系取决的。然而根据这些现象，当代艺术家们该如何作答？

2017年届的”独立艺术空间”将会用实验性的方案和趣味性的互动来呈现出新的对话。这不是一个给业内专业人士和寻求特定结果的地方，而是一个关注于城市、居民及两者间相互支持主题的；开放给创新和未经验证想法的论坛。

组织方：
I: project space 与IAS公共平台

特别感谢：
Sasha Fominskaya，Lava熔岩观，孙畅