The Gao Brothers – The Utopia of 20 Minutes Embrace – 2006

Gao Zhen (1956) and Gao Qiang (1962) are among China´s most significant contemporary artists and have presented internationally acclaimed exhibitions of their photography and performance work in New York, Paris and Moscow. Helen Marshall helped facilitate their first visit to Britain in 2006 with Digital Art Projects as part of an A.N networking event. The people in Nottingham took part in what is thought to be the first ever mass hugging event staged in Britain and part of the Gao Brothers’ global World Hug Day series of performances. More than 100 visitors gathered in the Arboretum where they were invited to hug a stranger for 15 minutes before joining in a group hug. The event was accompanied by choral music composed by J S Bach.

A video of the event is online at:

www.world-hug-day.net/Nottingham

The Gaos describe their hugging-performances as urban theatre and their most recent performance was at the Brandenburg Gate, Berlin in 2007. The Gao’s Embrace series is internationally acknowledged as a profound and significant work reflecting the realities of contemporary China while describing global problems, relevant for the whole of mankind.

Blacklisted in 1989, the brothers were not allowed to leave China for 14 years but nevertheless their reputation outside China continued to grow. In 2001 they were invited to perform ´Hug on the Human Plateau´ for the 49th Venice Biennale. As the travel ban was still in place the event had to take place in Jinan, China with others from around the world participating via the internet.

More about The Gao Brothers

RADIO 4 TODAY, 28.04.2006 HUGGING JOHN HUMPHRYS [audio]

RADIO 4 TODAY, letters and emails, 29.04.2006 audio clip

RADIO 5 LIVE, 28.04.2006

BBC NEWS BREAKFAST & BBC NEWS 24, 28.04.2006 article incl. video

BBC NEWS NOTTINGHAM, 02.05.2006 article incl. audio clip

BBC WORLD SERVICE, 01.05.2006

ITV NEWS, 30.04.2006

THE GUARDIAN, 22.04.2006: Chinese Artists Cross the Red Line