The 12th Shanghai Biennale opens 10th November 2018 at the Power Station of Art in one of China’s largest urban centres. The exhibition’s chief curator, Cuauhtémoc Medina is an art critic and historian from Mexico City, who has selected the theme of ​Proregress: Art in an Age of Historical Ambivalence. A merge of tensions between ‘progression’ and ‘regression’ as a reflection of our contemporary conditions, the exhibition explores the acceleration of technological progress together with the anxieties of climate change in the anthropocene. Both hope and failure are embodied in the state of the present and are explored through the works of international artists in the show.

The exhibition features new work by Lu Yang in a dedicated gallery space on the 3rd floor of the Power Station of Art. The new large scale installation features arcade machines altered to feature her videos, characters and music. A Dance Dance Revolution machine with a modified game can be played during the show. With installation and set design supported by Spiral / Wacoal Art Center, Tokyo the work is a continuation of her Electromagnetic Brainology series inspired by Japanese anime and games with new characters including Material World Knight (top image).

Taking place in a large former power station, the works of over 70 artists will be presented in the show. Other artists in the exhibition include Ryoji Ikeda, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Nadim Abbas, Yang Fudong, C&G, Francis Alÿs, Kader Attia, Alfredo Jarr, Seth Price, Samson Young, Chto Delat, Claire Fontaine, Andrea Fisher, Yoneda Tomoko and many others. Opening during Shanghai’s busiest art weeks alongside the West Bund Art and Design Fair and the Art021 The Shanghai Contemporary Art Fair from 8th-11th November, the city will feature many exhibitions and events throughout the week.

The Shanghai Biennale runs until 10th March 2019. For more information visit: www.shanghaibiennale.org/en/