http://s9/middle/521f9ce9g84bc3fcc4e48&690a mission for Chinese art" TITLE="《中国日报》-歌子采访On a mission for Chinese art" />中国日报记者Todd Balazovic

两个星期前歌子应邀受中国日报记者Todd Balazovic的采访谈论了国际艺术之间的交流。

歌子采访，点击连接：
中国日报 China Daily-On a mission for Chinese art

Chinese-born American Jessica Gezi has spent the last five years working as an independent art curator. Having spent the last 20 years in the US, Gezi says she uses art as a bridge between the two cultures.

Currently she is working as a guest curator to bring the works of 15 of China's up-and-coming artists to California State University, Sacramento, in the United States.

METRO: What does an art curator do?

G: Most of the artists are not professionals who can display their work properly, especially at a museum, art gallery, or community. They need to properly display their work and they need a professional to help them do it. Art curators have an art background and the ability to communicate with the right people to get works displayed.

METRO: What made you want to be an art curator?

G: My job is very meaningful to me; it's not just a job. Culture is very important. I think I have a mission to bring the Chinese art to the West to give Chinese artists exposure in the Western world. I always try to give the opportunity to Western people to see, to understand what's going on in China right now.

METRO: How do you select the artists?

G: Right now I really don't have to go out looking for artists. I get artists through friends in the art field. You know Chinese artistic communities are different than in the US. They are very tight. If you are good, people find you. This is different from the United States lifestyle where people are very individualistic. Most of the artists I display will find me and ask me to help them show their works.

METRO: Where do you get the money to put on shows?

G: It's easy to find artists but difficult to find money. Most places only have a certain budget. The cost of shipping art overseas is extremely expensive, we have to publish a book on the show and we have to insure the paintings. If the budget is not enough to ship them I have to raise money in other ways.

METRO: How?

G: Through fundraising, or sometimes out of my own pocket.

METRO: Are the works in your show for purchase?

G: Yes and no. Most of the shows I do are for cultural exchange. For example, I was the curator for a show at the National Art Museum in China and those works weren't for sale, they were just for exhibition. For the Sacramento university show the works are not for sale. But if I curate a show at an art gallery, they would be for sale.

METRO: What is the most expensive piece you've sold?

G: To me the market is not accurate. I've seen people sell works for five million yuan. That doesn't mean the work is good or bad. There is a lot of great artwork that is not on the market. There is also art that is valuable that is not necessarily good art.

METRO: How long does it take to coordinate one show?

G: My upcoming show has taken me two years to arrange. There is a lot of organizing that must be done. You must coordinate the artists, prepare the book, and set up the space. The Asian Art Museum in San Francisco just put on a show before I left called Shanghai, talking about how Shanghai has changed over the last century. It's not that big, but they have been working on it for more than four years.

METRO: How long will a show that's taken four years to set up run for?

G: At a big museum, maybe three months. Most museums will change a show every three months. My show will also run for three months.

METRO: What is the difference between your art shows and those seen in 798?

G: There really is no comparison. To me 798 art zone district is more commercialized. There is not a lot of art shown over there. They used to have a lot of artists studios there, the artists lived there and created their art there. But now most of the artists have moved out. The 798 art zone district is more like shops and galleries for tourists to go. My shows, again, are not about selling. I am more concerned about quality.