ART FRONTIER First Issue Seminar in California, USA

3:00 pm PST, May 28, 2023, Art Frontier First Issue Seminar was held at the Silicon Valley Asian Art Center in California. The seminar was moderated by Shu Jianhua, curator of the Silicon Valley Asian Art Center. Jeremy P.H. Morgan, professor of San Francisco Art Institute; Kansen Chu, former California State Assemblyman and Arts Commission chair; Hansong Zhang, director of the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco; Benjamin Chang, president of the Chinese Arts Association of San Francisco(CAASF); Dacia Daxue Xu, Co-founder and artistic and executive director of Qualia Contemporary Art, California; Arthur Ku, former president of the Chinese Arts Society of San Francisco; Editorial board member of Art Frontier Prof. Yu Chunming, Li Yaozhong, director of Oakland Chinese Art Cultural Salon; Artist Michael Zheng and others attended in the seminar.

Silicon Valley Asian Art Center curator Shu Jianhua chaired the seminar.

Comparing the diffusion of Japanese art with Chinese art in the West, curator Shu Jianhua described how Japan spread the cultural and artistic concepts of Zen and ink imported from China more widely in the West at an early stage in the context of its earlier modernization. However, China, which lagged behind in modernization, encountered various difficulties in the diffusion of bringing its culture and art to the West. He believes that the publication of Art Frontier is deeply conducive to the dissemination of authentic East Asian art, especially to effective further dissemination of East Asian art as reflected in Chinese culture.

Professor Jeremy P.H. Morgan has a great passion for Chinese culture and art which is reflected in his work. During the seminar, he said the collaboration with Art Frontier has given him a sense of friendship from the East, and he supposes that science and art can also provide useful communication. Furthermore, multicultural differences stimulate meaningful creativity. Differences can be understood as a humanistic intersection rather than a cultural barrier. Jeremy has no doubt that this journal is a good way to advance the communication between China and the West.

Professor of San Francisco Art Institute Jeremy P.H. Morgan addressed the seminar

Peter J. Liu, Editor-in-Chief of Art Frontier, addressed the seminar: “Thanks to every reader and writer of Art Frontier, and to every staff who works so hard on the journal. This journal is a bridge for art communication between China and the United States. We are devoted to the development of Chinese art from a global perspective and introduce great American artists to China to the contribution of art promotion and research.”

Editor-in-chief of Art Frontier addressed the seminar

In addition, Art Frontier participated in the opening of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month at Milton Marks Conference Center and Great Hall, San Francisco. Fiona Ma, California State Treasurer; Benjamin Chang, President of the CAASF; Lilly Deng, Secretary General of the CAASF; Jeremy P.H. Morgan, Professor of the San Francisco Art Institute, and many members of the CAASF attended the event.

Former California State Assemblyman and Arts Commission chair Kansen Chu addressed the seminar.

Director of the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco addressed the seminar.

President of the CAASF Benjamin Chang addressed the seminar.

Former president of the Chinese Arts Society of San Francisco and deputy general manager of World journal Arthur Ku addressed the seminar.

Editorial board member of Art Frontier Prof. Yu Chunming addressed the seminar.

Artist Michael Zheng addressed the seminar.

Gao Ling, editorial board member of Art Frontier, an art critic, and professor at the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts mentioned:

I had an hour-long conversation with Peter J. Liu of the newly established Art Frontier journal overseas yesterday. I expressed my expectations and suggestions for this purely English-language publication as an editorial board member. It reminded me of past events and experiences, founded The Critic with Wang Lin and Gu Chengfeng from 2008 to 2011, and recalled the current situation of Chinese art journals and self-media in the past ten years. At present, paper media has become the assessment basis for evaluation and career promotion with rigid quantity, resulting in congestion and scarcity of authentic academic works “rowing in the canoe”. As for self-media such as the Internet, applications, and public accounts are driven by the desire for survival and commercial interests because of the intense market environment. It is difficult to research academic issues and express academic credibility.

  Therefore, expressing authentic knowledge of art has become an embarrassing and difficult task that is thankless. Fortunately, true humanistic and artistic insights always originate from a few people and are always in a halo by their persistence. I sincerely hope that Art Frontier can survive. Even if it is not paper-based, always be aware of the issues and self-planing, invite manuscripts in a targeted manner, no advertising, refuse the report, and focus on facing issues... In this way, even if the audience is limited that young authors and readers are attracted, from mass communication to mass media, and then to niche communication shows that today's professional media focus on quality, not quantity.

Xu Xiaogeng, editorial board member of Art Frontier, professor and doctoral supervisor of the School of Fine Arts of Huazhong Normal University noted:

Running a good publication is not easy. There are 3,200 universities offering design majors in China, and the annual enrollment of more than 2 million design students shows a promising market. Try to expand the advertising market so that there is living water to keep the journal surviving and growing. If Art Frontier contributes to the professional title criteria or postgraduate award system, the opening of the design column is conducive to satisfying the demand of increasing readers and a wide market. Also insist on the quality, try to improve the Impact Factor, and expand subscriptions to the libraries and universities overseas, so that the journal will have good prospects. After 3 years of perseverance, Art Frontier may become a world-renowned art journal that shares East Asian art globally! You have done a great job! Congratulations on the successful founding of the publication and the prosperity of the business. To this end, let us join hands and keep on going!

Over 1 month after its publication, Art Frontier has continued to receive positive feedback from the art community. Academics have offered various developmental advice for the journal, besides, offering their experience in running and publishing journals to our editors. The journal also gradually clarifies direction for development after its debut: roots in traditional Chinese art research, bases on a global perspective to broaden Chinese modern and contemporary art, provides an international academic platform for Chinese and ethnic Asian art practitioners worldwide, focus on academic advance of art frontier, also dedicates to study and promote East Asian art and   Overseas Chinese Artists from an international view.