THE FASCINATING WORLD OF
PEARL LAM
At first glance, or maybe beheld from afar, she resembles the bizarre, magnificent characters from the movies of Weng Kar Wai..
Do you remember In the Mood for Love the entire peculiar, sophisticated, delicate elegance of the female characters?
Do you remember 2046?... | have to confess- my favourite movie …
Well, beheld from afar, in spite of the slightly eccentric elegance, in spite of the modern haircut, she walks onto the red carpet of Art with the nonchalance and self-possession of the person, who knows everything, can do everything, but especially dare everything.
With her oversized bracelets she is the wild orchid of a nonconformist society, a society wearied of such much wealth, so much poverty and athirst for joys, happiness, artistic beauty.
Maybe beheld from afar she resembles one of Weng Kar Wal’s characters, gliding on a NORMA brilliant!y sung by the GREATEST DIVA Angela Gheorghiu… but no she is just herself, a strong woman endowed with an outstanding artistic sense, who was precisely aware in the 90's that Art means never setting glory.
She had the boldness of approaching this artistic world, opening gallery after gallery expediently and concurrently with a lot of motivation.
She enabled certain artists to exist, to create and a enabled a generation of nouveaux riches to discover its ambitions of art collectors.
Maybe at the beginning of her road, she couldn’t even imagine what a huge career was ahead of her. And she has certainly not suspected the extent of the impact she would have upon so many people.
She became- maybe for some too quickly- a champion of multicultural discussions. Some considered her a bird-of-paradise . others considered her a very intelligent young woman with artistic, but also practical sense … others watched her from afar as a young, bold woman and maybe due to her oriental and so attractive appearance as a movie character that is slightly lyrical, slightly melancholic.
But look! After so many years, beyond those audacious or timid beginnings, she prevails as one of the most powerful ambassadors of artistic multicultural communication. EAST MEETS WEST.
| obsessively get back to the movie 2046 …. and | can notice again the resemblance of her haircut to such of the fabulous android female character.
But look! As in the scene from a science fiction movie, she appears talking clearly, unequivocally, directly, about things and subjects about which others have not talked for a long time or maybe they never meant to speak about.
It is the time of knowledge. It is the time of multicultural dialogue and of cultural and artistic interaction. No, this is not propaganda or dissimilation.
However, these are her motivations to live in the world of International Art. À strange, spoiled, intolerant, bizarre world, difficult to control and dainty to understand.
A world in which SHE entered through the front door, having from the very start her own opinions and apprehensions. She has not impersonated anybody and she has not attempted to prove anything.
She was and still is herself. Her position in the current artistic world is strong especially due to her behaviour.
And do you know how she is?
Like piano scores under the fingers of LANG LANG :
UNPREDICTABLE.
To be like she is, this is a real provocation even for herself.
Welcome to Pearl Lam's World.
À Woman between ART and FAME
Pearl Lam refused to be "Just" super-rich tycoon Lim Por-Yen's daughter.
Born in Hong Kong, educated in the US and UK, cultivated, pampered and protected by her family, Pearl proved that she is not only a rebel at heart and in spirit but also knows exactly which path to take in life.
The Pearl Lam Story. In big, majestic letters.
She is celebrated worldwide as the Empress of modern Asian Arts and promoter of young, international artists.
Since the 1990s until now Pearl has become a true institution and Grey Eminence in the world of arts. With her sharp eye and perfect evaluation of artistic talent, she rules the world of galleries.
She single-handedly opened the door for Chinese artists and paved the way for Chinese Art collectors to take part in the international competition.
Pearl remnvented Chinese art. She, who 1s as delicate as Chinese Ming porcelain and beautiful as a traditional Chinese poem 1s possibly the most feared and respected personalities on international Art's red carpet.
She authored a column in Baccarat Magazine, opened numerous galleries in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and London, led international art conferences and pushed and supported new artists the world over.
She has been honored by the New York Times as a pioneer of Chinese Art, celebrated as Global Collector, named an Official Art Power, nominated as one of the top 100 women of the 20st century and in 2013 made the Forbes list of the most powerful Asian women.
Despite all those nominations and outstanding accolades, Pear herself remains an ARTIST.
Sensitive, emotional, her personal message has become her galleries' message: Intercultural East-West dialogue.
Irremediably enamored with painting, sculpture, interior design, fashion and present in all corners of the world, even in Bahrain -at Art Bahrain, Pearl brought together artist from the entire globe, by their common denominator and managed, with her open intercultural conversations, to prove that art, indeed means BEAUTY, PEACE, LOVE - a bridge between nations.
Her very feminine personality is much more complex that what meets the eye. Her glamorous clothes, her extravagant Jewelry, her super luxurious residences are being medialized and are the main focus of glossy magazines. Yet, that 1s Just a show of lights and shadows wrapped around a woman with an extremely strong personality.
The real Pearl Lam has so much more to say. Things much more profound, that one day may even help build a cleaner, better, more beautiful, new world, which ultimately 1s the aspiration of people everywhere.
Dear miss Lam - how do you describe yourself? - for me as a writer you are a wild orchid with all oriental scents and sensitivities….with dark shadows and shining light in the same time.….vou are like a bridge between classical art and modern art- confusing and fascinating person!
My strict upbringing has greatly impacted who | am today. Having been sent away for school and being told what to do really triggered my rebellious nature, which has stayed with me today.
My parents did not want me to work in the art industry; my father equated running a gallery to being a “shopkeeper”, but | persevered. The first time |! launched a pop-up show, in 1993,
was the first time | felt | was truly alive. | used to say | felt like a living zombie prior to that. | realized what | really loved was art, particularly contemporary art.
Meeting the curator and intellectual Professor Gao Minglu was a huge turning point for me in my career and my understanding of contemporary Chinese art. Professor Gao is currently Research Professor in the Department of History of Art and Architecture at University of Pittsburgh, USA, he organized landmark exhibitions of Chinese contemporary art including 1989 China/Avant-Garde Exhibition in Beijing, and 1998 Inside Out: Chinese New Art in New
York which travelled to Mexico, Australia and Hong Kong through 2000. He has published a number of scholarly books on contemporary art and art theory in both English and Chinese.
| had read his writing and was desperate to learn more. | managed to make contact and asked to visit him in Pittsburgh. | was seeking knowledge, asking questions, trying to learn and understand. | wanted to know from where contemporary Chinese are art came and to understand how it differed from Western contemporary art which evolved from Modernism.
You are an art collector with a very strong feeling for REAL ART PIECE- how do you feel what is valuable in time, over the years?
| must appreciate the works and the artists concepts and thinking. Whenever an artist changes my perspective, it motivates me more to share their vision with the rest of the world. | like to work with artists who can surprise me and make me think differently about art and life in general.
We champion artists who re-evaluate and challenge perceptions of cultural practice from various regions. We do not select artists solely based on market popularity; we choose artists whom we believe in.
Most importantly | must like the person and to be able to build a long-term trustworthy relationship.
You are a young woman between all the world artists- what makes you strong and what makes you weak in your art communication?
Passion, hard work and daring to be different to push boundaries and break away from the norm.
| arrived in China at a pivotal time and witnessed the incredible growth of the Chinese art market from the beginning. | was meeting as many artists, intellectuals and experts as | could to understand how Chinese art evolved. This newly acquired understanding, coupled with my existing knowledge of the Western art world, allowed me to bridge the East and West.
Importantly | didn't shy away from being different and | refused to follow the norm. |! looked at Chinese contemporary art very differently from the West. | chose not to follow the Western model or view Chinese contemporary art through the gaze of Western
modernism, so when the right time came | was able to show the world another perspective or approach to Chinese contemporary art. | also became a bridge by introducing international artists to Asia.
You are a real ambassador of art between east and west- when did you understand that art can be a multicultural language, a bridge of unity between countries and nations?
| am from Hong Kong, a former British colony, where | had adopted the colonial attitude. This was compounded by the fact that | left for the USA and UK at a very early age, so | basically did not truly know Chinese culture but had a complete a misperception. Then fresh from my university graduation in the UK, | was dispatched to Shanghai where | have spent an enormous amount of time from 1993 onwards. After the first 10 years of living and visiting China, | started calling myself “Chinese” and was extremely proud of my Chinese heritage and culture, and | was embarrassed about my previous colonial mentality.
Through this | recognize how China is largely misunderstood in the West and vice-versa. With China having the fastest growing economy in the world and increasing global political influence, it is important to educate the world about Chinese culture and to foster open dialogue between China, the rest of Asia, and the West. There is much to learn from thousands of years of rich Chinese history and traditions, which have been evolving to this day.
Being Chinese informs my passion for continuation to bridge the divide between the East and West through art and culture. | am able to draw from multiple perspectives from both my Chinese culture and Western education, which helps me to maintain an open mind and sense of humor about life.
You are very feminine and for sure very sensitive - are you an artist
too? Who is your favorite painter?
My gallery works with many Yi Pai artists. Their works are meditative and spiritual, deriving from the philosophy of ink brush culture. | often argue that Chinese contemporary art does not follow Western contemporary art, western “modernism” has not played a great role in the development of contemporary art in China.
When | am confronted by art and | am in communication with the artists it is always very exciting and a pure learning process for me.
At the very beginning in your activity as gallerist - as a pioneer - did you have the family support?
My journey began in 1993 when | was sent to Shanghai to learn about property development.
| was living and travelling between Hong Kong, Shanghai and London. After three months in property development, | saved up my salary and spent it in one fell swoop at a gallery in Hong Kong, collecting two paintings by the Shanghainese artist Sun Liang. These were both the first Chinese works | had collected, along with the first serious works that | had ever owned. Sun Liang became my friend and introduced me to the art Scene in Shanghai, taking me to galleries and artist studios.
Art has always been a passion of mine, but my parents did not see it as a career, hence my time working in property development. In the 1995, | organized avant-garde pop-up exhibitions in Hong Kong, and in 2003, | was tasked with curating and mounting an exhibition as part of the French Year in China entitled “Awakening: La France Mandarine —The French Influence on Chinese Art”, which gave me further access to some Chinese artists who were still not on the international radar. | learned a great deal from these artists and, later, from scholars like Professor Gao Minglu.
After the positive experience with the “Awakening: La France Mandarine” exhibition, | decided to open my first gallery space in Shanghai. Galleries spaces in Hong Kong and Singapore followed thereafter.
What do you want people to know about you- already PEARL ALM IS A HUGE BRAND- what's the next target? Projects?
My immediate plans involve travel. | am never in one place for very long. | leave from Asia to Europe at the end of August, then back to Singapore and onto Indonesia for Art Stage Jakarta, then back to China before travelling to Australia for two weeks to meet artists and collectors and visit museums and institutions. In September | am in Hong Kong to open a show of the abstract expressionist painter Sam Francis and then to the US for Expo Chicago and to visit New York and LA to meet artists.
We have four galleries in three Asian cities, which sees me spend a lotof time inthese markets. However, the art world is not defined by geographic boundaries, so | spend much of my time traveling to cities around the world. This travel allows me to visit art fairs, biennales, foundations, museums and art galleries, and to establish relationships with artists, collectors, critics, museum curators and other dealers internationally. It is important for me to do this to remain current in terms of market trends, and to feel the pulse of the contemporary art world. This ultimately allows me to set the vision and strategy for the Galleries.
Founder of China Art Foundation, listed by FORBES magazine as one of the most powerful women of Asia, Empress of Asian Modern Art, Pearl Lam is — in this spectacular, noisy Art life — THE ULTIMATE ROMANTIC PATRON OF ARTS.
Monica Mergiu
ROYAL ARTS VISIONS : PEARL LAM