Having stayed in Shenzhen during the Spring Festival holiday, I decided to play the tourist in my own city. I went from museum to museum, getting my art on and trying to find my own creative inspiration.

It’s been said many times before that Shenzhen has no culture, but we all know that not to be true…

This first installment is the OCT Art & Design Gallery. Featuring various winners of Tokyo’s TDC competitions, all focusing on modern design. At a cost of only 15 to enter, it’s always worth a look!

Here is an excerpt from my museum article published last year for Shenzhen Daily, concerning OCT Art & Design: http://szdaily.sznews.com/html/2013-05/03/content_2466061.htm

(However, note that it may not be up to date)

On the other side of the district, bordering Nanshan, is Overseas Chinese Town, also known as OCT. Rich in creativity and hip design studios, several art galleries are located in the area. Adjacent to Splendid China is one of the best — OCT Art & Design Gallery. The building itself is totally avant-garde, a large black glass building held up by steel hexagons. With a focus on powerful contemporary design and hosted by Tokyo Type Directors Club/TDC, the gallery is full of nominees for their annual prizes. The subject matter is very diverse, including book design, typography, catalogues, record sleeves and other products. The first floor is especially concerned with fonts, and also has video installations featuring music videos by Icelandic pop star Bjork and Japanese rock band Androp. The second floor has posters, newspaper ads, bags, logotype, stationary and packaging, with designers from such countries as Britain, Russia, and Japan. The sparse third floor showcases the winners of the TDC prizes, from 2002 to the present. Open 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The price of admission is 15 yuan (US$2.4), 8 yuan for students. Admission is free for all on Tuesdays.