Kering launched the Women In Motion Mentorship Program in Shanghai, initiating inspirational dialogues between emerging female creators & renowned artists

From left to right: Contemporary ink artist Peng Wei, Soprano Huang Ying, Dancer and choreographer Duan Ni

 

 

 

On January 10, 2023, Kering launched the Women In Motion mentorship program at the Pudong Art Museum in Shanghai, aiming at setting up a platform for the next generation of talented women artists to express themselves and learn from a panel of experts’ experience and insights. The in-depth discussions between creators across generations reflected the great potential of women’s creativity in China’s contemporary art landscape.

 

Twenty-one young female creators, selected from different fields, including visual arts, performing arts (dance and theater), cinema, music, literature, architecture, and design, participated in the mentoring session with three renowned artists from different inspiring disciplines: soprano Huang Ying, contemporary ink wash artist Peng Wei, and contemporary dancer and choreographer Duan Ni.

 

The afternoon carefully fostered impactful discussions on one’s personal defining moment, breakthrough and career planning through diverse activities such as group breakout sessions and panel talks.

As exemplary female artists of their generation, the three mentors have accomplished impressive achievements and gained undisputed recognition in their respective fields. They also share the same mission and practice of passing on artistic experience.

They were delighted to share experiences in their career paths and insights into art creation to inspire the next generation.

 

Huang Ying emphasized how she believes success in artistic fields lies in talent, passion and hard work, as well as the valuable guidance and kind support from mentors at the right time.

 

Peng Wei commented, “Talent and diligence are essential for art creation. But to achieve the final leap, luck and timing are crucial, provided that we are well prepared. The young female creators gathered here today are talented and hard working in their respective fields. I’m looking forward to them realizing their own 'leap' and achieving greater success soon."

 

Duan Ni advised the emerging female creators: “When facing doubts and challenges, we should focus on how to improve our own work and make it more profound through continuous exploration. It is vital to keep faith. In fact, true faith is an instinct – we don't need to fight to keep it, we only need to listen.”

 

Jinqing Cai, President of Kering Greater China, attended the session and commented in her opening remarks, “Over the years, Women In Motion has been dedicated to supporting female artists by accompanying and empowering them in art creation and exploration. As the latest Women In Motion initiative in China, this Mentorship Program is intended to leverage resources from all walks of life to inspire female artists, boost creativity, and support the passing on of artistic heritage between different generations.”

 

The twenty-one mentees highly appreciated that Women In Motion Mentorship Program has created a community for female artists from different generations to express themselves, exchange ideas, and inspire and empower each other.

About the mentors

 

Huang Ying: A renowned lyric coloratura soprano and opera artist, Huang Ying is the first Chinese vocalist to perform the leading lady in an opera movie. She has been acclaimed by featuring film Madame Butterfly. Since then, she has appeared in opera houses including the Metropolitan Opera, Cologne Opera House, Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels Belgium, Royal Danish Opera and China National Center of Performing Arts.

 

Peng Wei: A contemporary ink artist, Peng Wei is widely celebrated for expanding and subverting the classical Chinese ink painting tradition by bringing traditional and historical practice into dialogue with contemporary international art practices. Conjuring extraordinary realities by layering personal narratives across time, geography, and tradition, her work interrogates cultural identity, intellectual belonging, and issues of gender. Since 2000, she has completed numerous series of work, which are executed across artistic mediums, such as painting, installation, video, and photography, grounded on the format and materiality of Chinese ink painting tradition.

 

Duan Ni: A dancer and choreographer, Duan Ni is the first Chinese modern dance dancer invited by international companies. Duan Ni embraced all the ideas and styles with her body's inclusiveness, and she formed her own body language and traits. She has studied at the Modern Dance Choreography Department of Beijing Dance Academy (Guangdong branch), led by dance education pioneer Madame Yang Meiqi, and used to dance with Shanghai Jin Xing Dance Theatre, Akram Khan Company in London, and Shen Wei Dance Arts in New York. In 2008, she joined TAO Dance Theater as the Founding Dancer and Artistic Director of the company. In 2021, she participated to the first edition of the Women In Motion at West Bund project, to celebrate women’s creativity in dance and choreography

 

 

About Women In Motion

 

Kering's commitment to women is at the heart of the Group's priorities and extends, through Women In Motion, to the field of arts and culture, where gender inequalities are still glaring, even though creation is one of the most powerful vectors for change.

 

In 2015, Kering launched Women In Motion at the Festival de Cannes with the ambition of highlighting women in cinema, both in front of and behind the camera. The program has since expanded in a major way to photography, but also to art, design, choreography and music across multiple partnerships and initiatives over the world (Arles and Kyotographie Photography Festivals, the Women In Motion at Westbund project, etc.).
Through its Awards, the program recognizes inspirational figures and young female talent, while its Talks and Podcasts provide an opportunity for leading personalities to share their views on the representation of women in their profession.

 

For the past eight years, Women In Motion has been a platform of choice that contributes to changing mind sets and thinking on the place of women - and the recognition they receive - in the arts and culture.

 

Since 2021, thanks to the WeChat subscription account, Women In Motion expands beyond seasonal events to offer a permanent content platform to tell inspiring stories of female creativity across film, music, dance, painting, architecture, literature, and new art.

 

 

About Kering

 

A global Luxury group, Kering manages the development of a series of renowned Houses in Fashion, Leather Goods and Jewelry: Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Brioni, Boucheron, Pomellato, DoDo, Qeelin, as well as Kering Eyewear. By placing creativity at the heart of its strategy, Kering enables its Houses to set new limits in terms of their creative expression while crafting tomorrow’s Luxury in a sustainable and responsible way. We capture these beliefs in our signature: “Empowering Imagination”.

 

 

Contacts

 

Roger HE    + 86 (21) 6185 3528      roger.he@kering.com

Yun JIANG     + 86 (21) 6185 3683     yun.jiang@kering.com

Vanessa LIU   + 86 (21) 6407 0066     vanessa.liu@fleishman.com

Eowyon CHENG       + 86 (10) 6407 0066    eowyon.cheng@fleishman.com