王薇薇 Elsa Wang 专访 文字的尽头 艺术的开始 艺术收藏＋设计

王薇薇与曹吉冈2023 年坦培拉作品〈白色U形〉 合影

“文字的尽头，是艺术的开始。”蓝骑士画廊（Bluerider ART）创办人王薇薇（Elsa Wang）自小热爱舞蹈 。在科技业创业成功后，却在职涯假期中华丽转弯，一头栽入艺术世界。追求成为摄影艺术家受挫，却开启画廊人生。私人收藏，陪伴她度过许多感性时光。她折服于艺术家“转化自身情绪成为独特媒材创作”的能力，务使让更多人理解这样的境界，彻底实践康定斯基（Wassily Kandinsky）所言——“实现精神性的愉悦”。

一切都因康定斯基

个性爽朗、声音洪亮的王薇薇特别澄清，自己并非从科技业跨足艺术，而是因为从事科技产业太累了，在职涯假期的10年间，意外打开了另一扇摄影创作之窗。她之所以热爱摄影，源自幼时热爱舞蹈，摄影宛如脑海中的律动之舞。她说电影也是如此，原本想从电影着手，但当时台湾的资源不多，于是选择了摄影课程，没想到自此创作能量一发不可收拾。

在追寻全新的艺术生命之初，王薇薇受到康定斯基一生所感的启发。曾任经济学研究助理的康定斯基开始绘画后，写下:“从事科学研究不曾给我这样的体验、这样的内心张力与创造力。我以前总觉得心里很空虚，现在当了艺术家，生活过得幸福无比。”她花了两个月流连于各大美术馆，在美国费城博物馆的康定斯基作品前感动落泪。“蓝骑士”（Blurider）是康定斯基发起的艺术团体，艺术带来的精神性提升，就此成为王薇薇的信仰。

2008年，她以“Dance Formosa”为题举办摄影个展。她的创作借由底片冲洗技巧，以粗粒子展现粗犷的影像质感，若作品尺寸太小，气势便有所局限。“我的摄影作品，就是要大，才有力量。”摄影集的封面是九二一大地震中，弯曲变形为S型的森林铁路轨道，她还记得临场所感受的巨大能量与内心震撼——在所有的创造之前，大自然才是真正的大艺术家。

与众人共享艺术与美的本质

王薇薇自我要求严格，只要是做自己喜欢的事情，一定要做到最好。她在创作主题上挑战自己的极限，认为身为专业的女性艺术家，必须能够坦诚面对自己的身体，不应该对全裸有羞耻感，否则何来对艺术坦承？没想到实际创作的当下，她无法克服内心的障碍，选择用手遮住自己的脸。最终的摄影作品呈现是半身裸照，在展场放大输出成3、4公尺高的作品，“当作品大到一个程度，眼中所见那再熟悉不过的身体，竟然是全然陌生的状态。”

无法坦诚面对身体的裸露这件事，让王薇薇感受到自己在创作上的极限，更体悟到要成为一名女性艺术家，必须具备“跳下悬崖”的勇气，为了追求艺术可以不顾一切，像是草间弥生、崔西?艾敏（Tracey Emin）等人。“当时的我已经成家立业，早就做不到『不顾一切』了。”

当王薇薇带着摄影作品集出国参加评图，在看见另一名参赛者作品的瞬间，心中便暸然艺术创作境界的高下之别，这也让她陷入长达1个月的挫折与沉思。“就算我无法成为专业的女性艺术家，但我知道谁的作品比我的更好。所以我决定如果自己有能力，要去支持、选择比我更为优秀、令我崇敬的艺术家，而且希望大家也看到他们的作品。让更多人可以发现、共享艺术与美的本质。”

王薇薇欣赏崔西?艾敏的勇气，于是入手收藏她的作品。崔西?艾敏的代表作是〈每个和我睡过的人，1963-1995〉:每天晚上跟不同的人睡一张床，并将之公诸于世，勇于突破表达的极限。一如行为艺术教母玛莉娜?阿布拉莫维奇（Marina Abramovi?）将身体化为实验品，开放大众拿取展场的口红、玫瑰花、手枪与刀等象征痛苦和快乐的物件，依自身意愿对她使用任何物件，因为无法预期，所以带有不可控制的危机。“崔西?艾敏与玛莉娜?阿布拉莫维奇都是无比勇敢的女性。”王薇薇感叹，唯有从创作的意图与气势出发，加上深厚的创作技巧基本功以及运气，三者缺一不可，才能成为真正顶尖的女性艺术家。

她收藏崔西?艾敏的黄色霓虹灯管作品〈I cried because I love you.〉（我哭泣是因为我爱你）。这个灯管系列作品的颜色与字句众多，唯有这句话令她心动。后来她也在自己的画廊展出这件作品，曾有位女性观众分享，因为失恋，所以看到这件作品就不自觉地哭了。王薇薇认为：“收藏艺术品，有时是收藏自己当下的心境，是特定的心情纪录。当我回顾藏品时，就像在观看自己的纪录片。”她最初是在伦敦的圣潘克拉斯火车站（电影《哈利波特》取景地点）看见崔西?艾敏的作品——以粉红色灯管制作的手写字迹〈I want my time with you.〉。“但那些语句都未曾打动我，唯有〈I cried because I love you.〉这件作品。然而所谓的感触也唯有在收藏的当下，如今我的感受又有所不同了。当下所经历的事件，情绪需要一个出口，看到藏品，你会觉得世界上有一个人跟你经历过同样的情绪，就会觉得自己并不是那么地孤独。”

崔西?艾敏黄色霓虹灯管作品〈I cried because I love you〉

她说自己当下的感触是，男人并不懂得珍惜“眼泪”，那真心爱过、才会流下眼泪，总是让男人“嫌烦”。她话锋一转，提到也许因为小时候太爱哭，长大之后翻转，决定不再流泪之故。她入手另一件崔西?艾敏作品是小件的人体速写，由于收藏灯管在先，想要再收一件她的画作，更为全面地参与艺术家创作的生命历程。

崔西?艾敏炭笔速写作品〈在你心里〉

文字的尽头，是艺术的开始

王薇薇在决定收藏的方向时，绝对是直觉感性先行，理性在后。“要能打动我的作品，必须能让我心中产生一声“哇！”的惊叹号，也许来自表现方式、概念，或媒材，并以一个我想像不到的方式，转化艺术家自身的情绪或感触，作出超乎想像的表达。”她觉得收藏就是一个感同艺术家情绪抒发的心意。“一件好的艺术品，胜过千言万语，不言自明。何谓艺术？文字的尽头，就是艺术的开始。”

她非常珍惜“独特性”，即便细微的、旁人毫无察觉的独特之处，她都能以欣赏的慧眼珍视，即便时空转换，依旧始终如一。因此，过于商业化、如同工厂生产流水线批量生产的作品，她绝对无法接受。“我从未想过借由艺术收藏进行投资，所以会收藏的作品必定是自己真心喜欢、有所共鸣的。”像是塩泽宏信（Hironobu Shiozawa）创作的陶瓷白发鲸型螺旋櫂式飞行装置，远看是一条鲸鱼载着大象；韩国李桓权（Yi Hwan Kwon）先为雕塑对象拍照，接着用电脑软体将之变形、制作出雕塑成品，浓缩平面与立体间的魔幻；法国新锐艺术家尼尔?贝鲁法(Neil Beloufa)也是国际影展的常客，以人造树脂与彩色涂料创作的铁件高120公分，巧妙重现双脚的律动感；远藤利克（Toshikarsu Endo）以铜、铁、木等材质，凝结富士山的异想世界……。

王薇薇收藏威廉?肯特里奇（William Kentridge）的作品，记录创办画廊的因缘。肯特里奇生长于矿产丰富的南非，父母皆为人权律师，历经种族隔离的年代，将种种反抗族裔压迫的情绪融入创作，跨越绘画、雕塑与剧场。王薇薇最初在艺博会见到他的小件画作，画面中以炭笔描绘穿着白衬衫、勒着脖子的上班族形象，勾勒出在职场拼搏的工作者共相，但是并未入手。直到她创办画廊，想找一件跟“蓝骑士”意象相关的作品，于是她收藏了威廉?肯特里奇250x240公分的织毯作品〈罗马的暗夜骑士〉（Roman centaur）。王薇薇出于直觉地表示，画面中的骑士就是“蓝骑士”，而背景的帐本图样，就代表了画廊经营的生意。“藏品一旦出了艺术家的工作室，就交由观者、收藏者重新解读，化为我的故事，融入我的收藏脉络了。”在介绍这件织毯作品的录像中，王薇薇看到作品由南非妇女一边唱着歌，一边编织而成的，借由声音的韵律为作品添加层次，也代表艺术家对南非妇女的全力支持，这也让她感动入心，无形中更强化了收藏作品的动机。

威廉?肯特里奇2014年织毯作品〈罗马的暗夜骑士〉

此外，威廉?肯特里奇的雷射切割压克力板的作品“小剪影”系列，将许多平凡之物放大，带来不同的观感，也让她心动收藏——183x42公分的女性头像、72x111公分的缝纫机、106x150公分的打字机。她曾想收藏一件威廉?肯特里奇的录像作品，但10版售罄，就再也没有看见喜欢的录像作品了。

“威廉?肯特里奇在北京办展时，我以藏家的身份受邀参加晚宴，有机会与他交流对话，发现他的性格相对安静。如今他的创作逐渐往剧场型态发展，想要收藏作品的难度就更高了。”

威廉?肯特里奇雷射切割压克力板作品“小剪影”系列

王薇薇曾赴德国，拜访早已成名的艺术家威利?希伯（Willi Siber），看见他家中满室藏画。原来希伯从30岁起，每年一定把收入的三分之一用在艺术品的收藏，借以提升自己的审美眼力，至今75岁不辍，令她十分佩服。她一眼认出墙上的威廉?肯特里奇作品，两人畅谈彼此的喜好，更进一步成为心神契合的合作伙伴。

以艺术为天命

艺术品会为人打开时空的通道，古今任你遨游。王薇薇最佩服艺术家们能将瞬间感动转化为令人赞叹创意的本事，这是她自己做不到的。好比中国艺术家曹吉冈的蛋彩山水画，以最为极简的写实，结合历代山水画家表现方式的局部，以及他自身亲赴现场写生的感动。“曹吉冈的创作历程有太多心路轴线的交织。艺术家一波又一波地向上提升与突破，实在太了不起。”

　英国雕塑家巴瑞．弗拉纳根（Barry Flanagan）的青铜雕塑与天鹅速写，是她新近入手的收藏。王薇薇望着小件的天鹅速写，深深看进画里，她说题材是否宏大并不重要，即使是再平凡不过的天鹅，却能透过简单的笔触，将生活中的寻常物事，带出令人有所感受的能量。她也收藏了斯洛伐克观念艺术家史蒂芬．帕博丘（?tefan Pap?o）的〈登山者〉雕塑，安放在蓝骑士画廊仁爱馆的入口处。高达150公分，糅合了金属、混凝土、矽胶等各式媒材的〈帕维尔〉（Pavel）雕塑，将登山者面对未知的勇气形塑于作品之中。这个系列的作品曾被艺术家背上山巅，录下它在荒原场域里的春夏秋冬。曾有藏家希望收藏这件作品，王薇薇却不忍割爱。

巴瑞?弗拉纳根1976年作品〈天鹅〉

史蒂芬?帕博丘2013年作品〈登山者〉

加藤泉2009年作品〈无题〉

当对话的氛围静默下来，王薇薇感叹地说，“能让自己心动的作品，愈来愈少了。”因此她训练自己，加快入手的速度，不可迟疑。她把更多的时间用在等待与感受，放慢脚步，在不同的城市中，随兴而轻松地漫游、寻宝，看到心动的作品就收，作为每趟旅程送给自己的礼物，这才是她想要的收藏之趣。

历经创作者与藏家的双重身份，让王薇薇在2013年创办画廊时，得以同理于双方的心态。她的经营态度是回归艺术，不以投资增值的角度，而是尽力分享艺术家的作品与创作的资讯，由观者自行判断是否收藏。“作品是要买回家朝夕相处一段时日的，若不是发自内心喜欢的话，无法感受到收藏艺术的喜悦。”

前往伦敦开设蓝骑士画廊梅费尔空间前，王薇薇也不免迟疑犹豫，但再多的考虑都抵不过一时的转念，她说：“如果上天要妳做一件事，便会为妳开上这么一扇窗。”近期蓝骑士画廊在伦敦梅费尔空间举办摄影艺术家尼克?维西（Nick Veasey）睽违10年的个展作品，其中有件与Mini Cooper真实相同比例的平面X光摄影作品，由于艺术家拍摄创作的成本不斐，因此作品的订价比一辆Mini Cooper的价格更高，王薇薇原以为这件作品乏人问津，没想到“地狱厨神”戈登，拉姆齐（Gordon Ramsay）竟慧眼成了这件作品的主人。瑞士籍艺术家马克（Marck）也曾在伦敦梅费尔空间的展览中，巧遇他早期作品的大藏家??。种种不可思议的缘分，更让王薇薇坚信艺术是她的天命这般想法。

藏品无论大小，自见惊人能量。王薇薇以布局国际的视野，随兴悠游于艺术收藏的领域，在精神与物质之间的平衡拿捏，既有未见之明，更有深刻沉思。问她为何坚守着自己辟出的领地？她笃定地认为，艺术应当赋予生活更多的创造与意义，带着你拓展想像的极境。

王薇薇与曹吉冈2021年坦培拉作品〈荒寒9〉合影

Elsa Wang and Cao Jigang's 2021 Tempera work 〈White U-shape〉

“At the end of words, art begins.” Elsa Wang, the founder of Bluerider ART, has loved dance since childhood. After achieving success in the IT industry, she took a career break and made a glamorous pivot into the art world. Though her pursuit of becoming a photographic artist was thwarted, it led her to a career in gallery management. Her private collection has accompanied her through many emotional moments. She is captivated by artists' ability to “transform their emotions into unique creative mediums” and strives to help more people understand this realm, fully realizing Wassily Kandinsky's assertion of “achieving spiritual pleasure.”

It All Started with Kandinsky

Vivacious and loud-voiced, Elsa Wang clarifies that she did not transition from the tech industry to art but found a new window to photographic creation during a ten-year career break due to exhaustion from her tech business. Her love for photography stems from her childhood passion for dance, as photography resembles a dance of rhythms in her mind. She says the same about film; initially wanting to pursue filmmaking, she found limited resources in Taiwan at the time and opted for photography courses instead. This choice unleashed an unstoppable creative energy within her.

At the beginning of her quest for a new artistic life, Elsa Wang was inspired by the life of Wassily Kandinsky. Kandinsky, who once worked as an economics research assistant, wrote after starting his painting career, “Scientific research never gave me such experiences, such inner tension, and creativity. I used to feel very empty inside, but now as an artist, I live a life of immense happiness.” Wang spent two months visiting various art museums, and was moved to tears in front of Kandinsky's works at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. “Bluerider”, the name of the art group founded by Kandinsky, symbolizes the spiritual uplift that art brings, which has since become Elsa Wang's belief.

In 2008, Elsa Wang held a solo photography exhibition titled “Dance, Formosa.” Her work utilized photo essay, showcasing a rough texture through coarse granularity. She believed that small-sized pieces would limit the impact of her work. “My photographs need to be large to have power” she asserted. The cover of her photography collection featured an S-shaped forest railway track twisted by the big 921 earthquake. She still recalls the immense energy and emotional impact she felt on site, recognizing that before all creation, nature is the true greatest artist.

Sharing the Essence of Art and Beauty with Everyone

Elsa Wang holds herself to high standards, striving for excellence in everything she loves. She challenges herself with her creative themes, believing that as a professional female artist, one must honestly confront one's body and not feel ashamed of nudity.  Without such honesty, how can one be true to art? However, during the actual creation process, she couldn't overcome her inner barriers and chose to cover her face with her hands. The final photographic work is a half-nude portrait, enlarged to 3 - 4 meters high in the exhibition. “When the work is enlarged to such an extent, the body that is so familiar in one's eyes becomes completely unfamiliar.”

Being unable to honestly face the exposure of her body made Elsa Wang realize her creative limits. She understood that to be a female artist, one must have the courage to “jump off a cliff”, to pursue art without regard for anything else, much like Yayoi Kusama and Tracey Emin. “At that time, I had already established a family and career, so I couldn't be 'reckless' anymore”, she reflected.

When Elsa Wang took her photography portfolio abroad for a critic review, she immediately recognized the superior artistry of another participant's work. This realization led to a month-long period of frustration and deep reflection. “Even if I couldn't become a professional artist, I knew whose work was better than mine. So, I decided that if I had the means, I would support and promote artists who are more outstanding and admirable than I am. I want everyone to see their work, allowing more people to discover and share the essence of art and beauty.”

Elsa Wang admired Tracey Emin's courage and decided to collect her works. Emin's iconic piece, 〈Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963–1995〉, involved sleeping with different people each night and publicly presenting this act, boldly pushing the limits of expression. Similarly, performance art pioneer Marina Abramovi? turned her body into an experimental object, allowing the public to use various items, such as lipstick, roses, guns, and knives—symbols of pain and pleasure—on her at will, creating an unpredictable and uncontrollable situation fraught with danger. “Tracey Emin and Marina Abramovi? are incredibly brave women”, Elsa Wang reflected. She believes that only by combining the intention and momentum of creation with a solid foundation of creative skills and a bit of luck can one become a truly top-tier female artist.

She collected Tracey Emin's yellow neon light piece, 〈I cried because I love you〉. Amongst numerous colors and phrases in the neon series, it was this particular sentence that struck a chord with her. Later, she exhibited this artwork in her own gallery. One female viewer shared that she couldn't help but cry upon seeing the piece due to a recent heartbreak.  Elsa Wang believes, “Collecting art is sometimes collecting one's current state of mind, a record of specific emotions. When I look back at my collection, it's like watching a documentary of myself.” She first encountered Tracey Emin's work at London's St. Pancras railway station (featured in the Harry Potter films), where Emin's handwritten phrase 〈I want my time with you〉 was displayed in pink neon. “But none of those phrases touched me; only 〈I cried because I love you〉 did. However, the impact is only felt at the moment of collection. Now, my feelings have changed. When you experience something, emotions need an outlet. Seeing the collection, you feel like there's someone else in the world who has experienced the same emotions as you, making you feel less alone.”

Tracey Emin neon light work〈I cried because I love you〉 

She remarked that men often fail to appreciate “tears”, the genuine tears shed only by those who have truly loved, often finding them “annoying”. She then shifted the conversation, suggesting that perhaps because she cried a lot as a child, she decided to stop shedding tears as she grew older. Another Tracey Emin piece she acquired is a small-scale figure sketch. Since she acquired the neon light piece first, she wanted to collect one of Emin's paintings as well, to more fully engage in the artist's creative journey.

Tracey Emin Charcoal sketch〈In your heart〉 

At the end of words, art begins.

When Elsa Wang decides on the direction of her collection, intuition and sensibility take precedence, with rationality following. “To captivate me, a piece must evoke a ‘Wow!’ in my heart, whether through its expression, concept, or medium. It should transform the artist's emotions or sentiments in a way that surprises me.” She believes collecting is a gesture of empathy with the artist's emotional expression. “A great piece of art speaks volumes without words. What is art? At the end of words, art begins.”

She greatly values “uniqueness”, appreciating even the most subtle and unnoticed unique aspects with discerning eyes, remaining steadfast in her appreciation despite changes in time and space. Therefore, she categorically rejects overly commercialized works that resemble mass-produced factory products. “I've never considered art collecting as an investment, so the pieces I collect must be ones that I genuinely like and resonate with.” Examples include Hironobu Shiozawa's ceramic sculpture of a white long-whiskered whale flying with an elephant on its back, Yi Hwan Kwon's sculptures created by photographing objects and then transforming them with computer software, creating a magical fusion between 2D and 3D, and Neil Beloufa's 120 cm high iron pieces made of synthetic resin and colored paint, skillfully capturing the movement of feet. Toshikatsu Endo utilizes materials like copper, iron, and wood to depict the otherworldly beauty of Mount Fuji.

Elsa Wang's collection of William Kentridge's works marks the beginning of her gallery. Kentridge, who grew up in mineral-rich South Africa, had parents who were human rights lawyers. Having experienced the apartheid era, he infused his creations with emotions of resistance against ethnic oppression, spanning painting, sculpture, and theater. Wang first encountered his small drawing at an art fair, depicting a businessman in a white shirt with a noose around his neck, sketched in charcoal—a portrayal of the struggles of workers in the corporate world. However, she didn't acquire it at that time. When she founded her gallery, she sought a piece related to the “Bluerider” concept and chose Kentridge's 205x240 cm tapestry, Roman Centaur. Wang instinctively felt that the centaur in the image represented the “Bluerider”, while the ledger patterns in the background symbolized the business aspect of running a gallery. “Once a piece leaves the artist's studio, it's up to the viewers and collectors to reinterpret it, becoming part of my story and integrating into my collection narrative”, she said. In a video introducing the tapestry, Wang saw that it was woven by South African women who sang as they worked. The rhythm of their voices added layers to the piece and represented the artist's full support for South African women, which deeply moved Wang and further reinforced her motivation to collect the artwork.

William Kentridge tapestry work〈Roman centaur〉2014

In addition, Elsa Wang was captivated by William Kentridge's laser-cut acrylic series, “Small Silhouette“, which enlarges ordinary objects to bring a different perspective. She collected pieces like the 183x142 cm female head, the 72x111 cm sewing machine, and the 106x150 cm typewriter. She once intended to collect one of Kentridge's video works, but the edition of ten was sold out, and she hasn't found another video piece she likes since.“When William Kentridge held an exhibition in Beijing, I was invited to the dinner as a collector, giving me the opportunity to converse with him and discover his relatively quiet personality. Now that his work is gradually evolving towards theater, the difficulty of acquiring his pieces has increased”, she explained.

Elsa Wang once traveled to Germany to visit the renowned artist Willi Siber. She was impressed to see his home filled with an extensive art collection. Siber, starting at the age of 30, has dedicated a third of his annual income to collecting art to refine his aesthetic sensibilities, a practice he has continued unceasingly to the age of 75. Wang was particularly impressed by this dedication. She immediately recognized a William Kentridge piece on the wall, which led to an engaging conversation about their mutual interests. This encounter further developed into a harmonious partnership.

Art as Destiny

Art opens a portal through time and space, allowing one to traverse freely between eras. Elsa Wang deeply admires artists for their ability to transform fleeting moments of inspiration into awe-inspiring creativity, something she feels she cannot achieve herself. For example, Chinese artist Cao Jigang's egg tempera landscape paintings combine minimalist realism with elements from traditional landscape painters and his own emotional experiences from painting on-site. "Cao Jigang's creative journey involves countless intertwining emotional paths. Artists continuously elevate and push their boundaries, and that is truly remarkable."

British sculptor Barry Flanagan's bronze sculptures and swan sketches are among Elsa Wang's latest acquisitions. Gazing deeply into the small swan sketch, she remarked that the grandeur of the subject matter is irrelevant. Even the most ordinary swan, through simple strokes, can evoke a powerful response, drawing energy from the mundane aspects of life.

She also acquired the〈Climber〉sculpture by Slovak conceptual artist ?tefan Pap?o, which is placed at the entrance of the Bluerider ART gallery on Ren'ai Road. Standing 150 cm tall and made from a mix of metal, concrete, and silicone, the 〈Pavel〉 sculpture embodies the courage of climbers facing the unknown. This series of works was once carried by the artist to a mountain peak, recording the sculpture's existence through the seasons in the wilderness. Although a collector expressed interest in purchasing this piece, Wang Weiwei couldn't bear to part with it.

Barry Flanagan〈Swan〉, 1976

?tefan Pap?o〈Pavel〉, 2013

Izumi Kato〈Untitled〉, 2009

When the conversation quieted, Elsa Wang sighed and said, “There are fewer and fewer pieces that move me.” To address this, she has trained herself to acquire artworks more quickly, without hesitation. She spends more time waiting and feeling, slowing down her pace to casually and leisurely explore different cities. When she encounters a piece that captivates her, she buys it, treating it as a gift to herself from each journey. This, she says, is the true joy of collecting.

Having experienced both as a creator and a collector, Elsa Wang was able to empathize with both perspectives when she founded her gallery in 2013. Her approach to gallery management is centered on art itself, rather than investment value. She strives to share information about the artists and their works, leaving it to the viewers to decide whether to collect. “Artworks are meant to be lived with and appreciated over time. If you don't genuinely love the piece, you won't experience the joy of art collecting.”

Before opening the Bluerider ART gallery space in Mayfair, London, Elsa Wang had her doubts. However, she realized that no amount of hesitation could override a moment of inspiration. She said, “If heaven wants you to do something, it will open a window for you.” Recently, Bluerider ART held photographer Nick Veasey's first solo exhibition in a decade at their Mayfair location. One of the highlights was a life-size X-ray photograph of a Mini Cooper. Due to the high cost of creating such works, the piece was priced higher than an actual Mini Cooper. Elsa Wang initially thought it would struggle to find a buyer, but to her surprise, celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay became the proud owner. Swiss video artist Marck also had an exhibition at the Mayfair space, where he serendipitously met a major collector of his early works. These remarkable connections further convinced Elsa Wang that art is indeed her destiny.

No matter the size, each piece in her collection radiates incredible energy. With an international perspective, Elsa Wang navigates the realm of art collecting with both foresight and deep contemplation, balancing the spiritual and the material. When asked why she steadfastly maintains her chosen path, she firmly believes that art should imbue life with greater creativity and meaning, pushing the boundaries of imagination.

Elsa Wang and Cao Jigang's 2021 Tempera work 〈Barren Cold 9〉

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