It's not just a three digit number. For 798 is simply much more than that. In fact it's a symbol. In Beijing it means arts, vanguards, unchained personalities and alternative life goals. Free and rambling atmospheres as well as wild and unconquered attitudes are everywhere. In fact very much akin to what can be discovered and sensed on the southern bank of the River Seine, Paris, France.
The 798 Art District is in the Dashanzi area, Chaoyang District, northeastern Beijing. The area was once home to the State's electronic industries. Because of this many available industrial units the now famous Factory 798 were established.
Years ago the buildings were the key to this industrial project, constructed with help from the old Soviet Union and designed by the former East Germany. This was a part of the history of New China's industrialization.
As Beijing's economy developed and the structure of industry changed the initial mission of the 798 district was withering and dying away. In a short period of time this industrial area became desolate as businesses moved out but the factories were left behind... eerily quiet and unused.
Since 2002 artists' studios started to pop up in the district. Properties are mostly rented and new life and light has been created in these once hollow, unused buildings. They were gradually turned into a combination of galleries, art centers, studios, design companies, fashion stores and bars.
The district has become the biggest arts area in China and earned great international acclaim in the space of just two years.
The 798 district leaves visitors with the impression of a combination of historical and artistic factors... the formation of new, modern lifestyles in old spaces. But there are real arts and artists in 798 as well as much traditional life.
It's an opportunity and an outlet for modern young artists to enthusiastically pursue their ideals. It has also provided them with a spiritual homeland. And they're breathing new life into an area of Beijing which needed exactly that. |
