Rachel Whiteread Ladies First All Fired Up The Art of Chess Calle Heads to Greenland to Highlight Climate Change Museum Plans Evolution-Inspired Answer to Sistine Chapel New Offices for Linda Pace Foundation Curator's Voice: Ralph Rugoff on "Psycho Buildings"

Send a letter to the Editor

Save to Del.icio.us Digg this

Known for spotting promising artists such as Damien Hirst and Rachel Whiteread early in their careers, superstar collector Saatchi said he created the new site after he noticed more and more Chinese art students were building profiles on Stuart.

“There are so many artists in China who want their work to be seen,” he told the newspaper. “These students, like all the others, want to know what’s going on around the world.”

The new site, in Mandarin instead of English, launched two weeks ago and is accessible from Saatchi’s homepage. In addition to profiles, it soon will have all the amenities of the English version: a chat room in Mandarin and a forum encouraging artists to debate current issues. The site so far has 23 members.

“Our goal is to break down language and cultural barriers,” said Neeraj Rattu, head of the site’s technology team. The team estimates that 20 to 30 art schools operate in China, and roughly 10,000 students will graduate from the schools this year.

“That leaves roughly 10,000 unrepresented artists,” said Kieran McCann, leader of the site’s content and creative development.

Rattu added that the site is contacting art schools in China to let students know about the opportunity to post.

Saatchi says he won’t stop with China. Over the next six months his team hopes to draw in artists from India, Russia, Spain and South America.