Fresh Paint Art Project


	After arriving in Beijing in 2004, Fresh Paint Art Project founders Giorgio Ronzani (Genoa, Italy) and Colleen Stricker (San Diego, California) were soon enthralled by the volume, variety and high-velocity innovation presented by the local contemporary art market. Their interest and involvement grew steadily and in 2006 they formed an alliance with the Song Zhuang Art Community, a collective located on the rural outskirts of Beijing. Contact with the painters, their families and their work has cemented their desire to provide Chinese contemporary art with greater access to international forums in China and abroad. One Fresh Paint’s first steps was to encourage the SZ Community to make several changes which would give it a greater degree of autonomy. To this end, the Community recruited nearly 50 local artists to compile a portfolio of “affordable art”, meaning that participating artists agree to maintain a stock of paintings at the Community Gallery at all times. These contributions are then sold at special collective prices, assuring that virtually every visitor to the gallery is able to find something to suit his or her tastes and budget. Bus tours of staff from local embassies now frequent the Song Zhuang Art Community Gallery and the artists have created for themselves a source of liquid income with which to buy supplies. The revenues to the Community from these sales have already provided capital for the printing of brochures, posters and postcards. Fresh Paint has endeavored to promote the Community in Italy and the United States with successful participation in such events as the Artour-O Exhibition in Florence, Italy in February 2007 and the March 2007 OCEANA benefit exhibition of ocean-themed art in San Francisco, sponsored by the Geras Tousignant Gallery. After our initial investment, the Fresh Paint Art Project has continued to work together with the Song Zhuang Artists’ Community in developing its gallery facility. We have also stepped up promotional activities both in China and abroad, giving artists a more visible profile and facilitating market access.