Hangzhou, China – October 26, 2026 – 2026 “Make A Swing” Hangzhou Contemporary Art Week will take place in Hangzhou from 7 to 15 November 2026. Jointly initiated by OōEli and BY ART MATTERS, the event is held under the guidance of the Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sport of West Lake District, with Zhejiang TV (The New Platform of China Blue), Wasu Media and imagokinetics as co-organisers.

Under this year’s theme, “Since You’re Here”, the programme explores participatory art, bringing together 80 art spaces across nine areas of the city. Five programme strands—“See Art”, “Find Inspiration”, “Make Art”, “Talk About Art” and “Play with Art”—alongside five free art bus routes, bring exhibitions, creative practices and conversations into everyday urban life.

In the Hangzhou dialect, “Make A Swing” means to roam or drift. “Since You’re Here” carries forward this relaxed, open approach to exploring the city, encouraging people to venture out and encounter art in everyday life. From more than 40 participating spaces in 2024 and over 50 in 2025 to 80 this year, the network of “Make A Swing” Hangzhou Contemporary Art Week continues to expand, extending beyond museums and galleries into artists’ studios, neighbourhood lanes and rural spaces.

​As the initiators of Art Week, OōEli and BY ART MATTERS aim to provide a platform that connects art institutions, the public and the city’s cultural resources, raising the visibility of artistic practices across Hangzhou while encouraging people to rediscover the city through art.

This year’s Art Week seeks to bring together artistic and cultural resources scattered across the city, creating an interconnected network that visitors can explore on foot. The five programme strands are more than simply categories; together, they offer a journey from observation and discovery to creative participation, discussion and engagement.

A “City Committee”, comprising representatives from Hangzhou’s art institutions and independent practitioners, will also help expand the institutional network, develop routes, organise discussions and co-create projects. Through these collaborations, Art Week aims to evolve from an annual event into a sustained framework for cooperation among the city’s art institutions.

Exhibitions across the city will offer a diverse range of artistic perspectives during Art Week, from scholarly retrospectives of artists such as Chu Teh-Chun and Feng Guodong to solo exhibitions by international artists including Chiharu Shiota and Kyungmi Shin. The programme will also encompass artistic experimentation with AI, 3D printing and video games, alongside contemporary reinterpretations of traditional materials and processes, including white porcelain and fermentation.

The programme will also feature works rooted in specific regional experiences, from Moganshan to the pastoral landscapes of Qinghai, alongside participatory projects involving workshops, walks and tea tastings. Through their distinct approaches, participating institutions will showcase the diversity of Hangzhou’s contemporary art ecosystem while exploring the relationships between art, the city and everyday life.

As part of the programme, BY ART MATTERS will open “Hangzhou: Where Sea Becomes Cloud” on 29 October. Taking the geological history of receding seas and emerging land as its starting point, the exhibition traces the changing forms of water to examine transformations in the urban landscape and ways of life. Bringing together 50 artists and artist collectives, it considers how people might reposition themselves in relation to natural, urban and technological environments, offering a perspective rooted in Hangzhou on the broader relationships between contemporary art and the city.

Beyond exhibitions, Art Week will extend opportunities for participation into everyday urban life. In addition to the 80 participating institutions, the art map will highlight “Find Inspiration” and “Make Art” locations recommended by the City Committee. These will include spaces directly associated with creative practice, alongside the natural landscapes of West Lake, local markets and other everyday settings, reconnecting art with the environments from which it emerges.

Meanwhile, five free art bus routes will connect areas around West Lake, along the Grand Canal and on both banks of the Qiantang River, as well as Zhuantang and Fuyang District. The buses will also serve as mobile exhibition spaces, inviting emerging artists and creatives to present their work on board. A special Art Week ride-hailing voucher package offered by Amap will provide an additional, flexible way for visitors to explore the city.

Art Week will also connect its public cultural programmes with the city’s wider cultural tourism offerings. Residents and visitors will be able to access information about art bus routes and stamp-collecting activities through a single platform, as well as take advantage of special offers on accommodation, transport and dining. Together, these initiatives aim to make Hangzhou’s contemporary art scene more accessible to residents and visitors alike.

Creative activities and discussions will take place across the city throughout Art Week. A dedicated art and technology programme, a limited residency alliance and artists’ open studios, alongside forums exploring artist-led initiatives in Hangzhou, urban experience, technology and the future, will bring specialist discussions into more accessible public settings.

Projects such as “Print Hangzhou” will connect technology, creativity and public participation through collaborative 3D modelling. An opening-night drone show, an art auction as part of the “Flower and Bird Festival”, and music and live performances during the OōEli Performing Season will further enrich the programme, creating additional opportunities for public engagement.

Building on the first edition’s emphasis on forging connections and the second edition’s continued exploration of the city, the third edition of “Make A Swing” Hangzhou Contemporary Art Week invites an even wider range of institutions, artists, creatives and members of the public to participate. The event seeks to bring together artistic practices taking place across Hangzhou, creating opportunities for institutions, artists and the public to encounter one another in the city’s everyday spaces.

Over nine days, visitors can engage with the programme at their own pace, discovering new perspectives on Hangzhou and the art emerging within it as they walk, explore and participate.

This year’s Art Week will also collaborate with Zhejiang TV (The New Platform of China Blue), Zhejiang Travel Pass, Wasu Media, Li Auto, Bambu Lab and Amap to create further opportunities for art to become part of the city’s everyday life. We extend our thanks to all our partners for their support of this year’s edition.

Event: 2026 “Make A Swing” Hangzhou Contemporary Art Week

Annual Theme: Since You’re Here

Dates: 7–15 November 2026

Guiding Authority: Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television, Tourism and Sport of West Lake District

Organisers: OōEli; BY ART MATTERS

Co-organisers: Zhejiang TV (The New Platform of China Blue); Wasu Media; imagokinetics

About “Make A Swing” Hangzhou Contemporary Art Week

In the Hangzhou dialect, “Make A Swing” means to roam or drift. “Make A Swing” Hangzhou Contemporary Art Week engages both specialist art audiences and the wider public. Its mission is to strengthen and invigorate Hangzhou’s contemporary art ecosystem while raising the city’s profile within the international art world. The initiative aims to establish Hangzhou as a leading centre for contemporary art in China, combining academic rigour, community engagement and commercial collaboration.

About OōEli

OōEli comprises 17 buildings and a central plaza, with a total floor area of approximately 230,000 square metres. Designed by the renowned Pritzker Architecture Prize laureate Renzo Piano, it is his first project in China. OōEli brings together practitioners, enthusiasts and businesses working across art, architecture, fashion, design, creativity, nature and culture.

Its venues include BY ART MATTERS, the B1OCK concept store, THE DOORS hotel and OōEli Space. It also brings together a collection of businesses defined by individuality, curiosity and artistic character, including TSUTAYA BOOKS at OōEli in Hangzhou. OōEli is also home to the headquarters of JNBY Group and GOA.

About BY ART MATTERS

About BY ART MATTERS is a contemporary art space located in OõEli, designed to world-class museum standards by the Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Since its opening in December 2021, it has hosted exhibitions and produced publications while creating opportunities for artists. BY ART MATTERS offers the public a “third space” – outside the routines of everyday life and the demands of work – providing a distinctive environment for creativity and reflection.

BY ART MATTERS seeks to become one of Hangzhou’s key hubs for both the international and domestic art scenes, acting as a catalyst for sensitivity, research, and artistic practice. Our aim is to cultivate the public’s independent aesthetic appreciation of contemporary art through a range of exhibitions and educational activities, offering sensual, intellectual, and spiritual inspiration.

About BY ART MATTERS

About BY ART MATTERS is a contemporary art space located in OõEli, designed to world-class museum standards by the Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Since its opening in December 2021, it has hosted exhibitions and produced publications while creating opportunities for artists. BY ART MATTERS offers the public a “third space” – outside the routines of everyday life and the demands of work – providing a distinctive environment for creativity and reflection.

Media Contact
Company Name: BY ART MATTERS
Contact Person: Du Shuqi
Email: Send Email
Phone: +86 13396534791
City: Hangzhou
Country: China
Website: https://www.byartmatters.com

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