Once favoured by the Shanghai bourgeois class, many well-known cultural figures lived here during the 1920’s and 30’s, including Ba Jin, Xu Guangping, Xu Beihong and Hu Die. This has created a rich cultural atmosphere in the lane. This area has always been one of the representative places for Shanghai culture. Although after the cultural revolution the prestigious area codes were diluted within Sh
anghai, one can still feel the coziness and humanity which reflect the original Shanghai ‘sentiments’ in Huai Hai Fang. This contrasts with the modern match boxes and concrete jungle that sit just outside, on Huai Hai Lu. FQ stands in stark contrast to the drift for Chinese contemporary art to be displayed in warehouse style galleries, following the American and North European trend, often set in a few hundred square meters or even thousands. The works follow “the bigger the better” mentality, and exaggeration and overstatement has become the mainstream. FQ Projects features artwork that is high in quality, with an emphasis on significance and humanity. Framing them within a real living space and neighborhood scenario, FQ aims to promote and support those thoughtful artworks and artists who differ from the mainstream. This is not only to fill the niche of the restless Chinese contemporary art and fast-food life style, but also to carry on the tradition of ‘small but delicate’ Shanghai culture.
