Pearl Lam is now considered an art world wonder, but it has not been an easy journey for her. Despite the challenges, this eponymous owner of the Pearl Lam Galleries has been a successful curator, gallerist, patron, and collector for years.
Lam is a lady who has always pushed the ‘boundaries,’ and she has even broken several glass ceilings. When Pearl Lam organized her first exhibition, she extensively studied Chinese contemporary art and artists to offer a different view of Chinese art to China and the world. Soon after opening her first gallery, she pushed the envelope and challenged the West to look differently towards Chinese art and culture. It became more evident with her exhibitions and selecting artists to showcase and represent. The result has been Pearl Lam becoming the powerhouse of China’s art world and the most recognisable gallerist in the world.
Pearl Lam Powerhouse of China's Art World On A New Mission
Despite being the owner of Pearl Lam Galleries, which has become an international hub for artists and art connoisseurs, Lam is not ready to sit and enjoy her laurels. She wants to change how lesser-known art and artists bring them to the forefront. Pearl Lam, of late, has been working closely with local African artists, which includes indigenous artists, and promoting their artwork and how their culture inspires it.
Lam recently visited Nigeria’s Lagos and spent time with local artists of the region, hoping to break the boundary that was once built between the colonizers (West) and the colonized (Africa/East). She has already done her part of blurring the lines between street artists and conventional artists whose works can be shown in prestigious galleries by giving Hong Kong Pearl Lam Galleries space to street artists.
International Gallerist Pearl Lam Conquering New Boundaries
Now, the challenge this powerhouse of China’s art world has taken up is changing and challenging the notion of the conservative art world and how it has for centuries perceived the folklore and local African art and artists. Challenging the way the Western art world considers African art or Black artists was already evident with the first Pearl Lam’s Podcast interview. Lam interviewed Alayo Akinkugbe, and both discuss the lack of presence of the influence of African and Black art and artists in the coveted art schools of the UK, where Alayo is a student.
Pearl Lam doesn’t take the moniker’ most recognisable gallerist in the world’ lightly. She has been working steadfastly to bridge the gap between the Western and Eastern art worlds and delineate the distance between traditional art and contemporary street-style art forms. It was evident at the latest Art Basel Hong Kong Pearl Lam gallery section, where Mr. Doodle was at the forefront for Lam.
Not only is Pearl Lam committing herself to promoting unconventional artists through Pearl Lam Galleries, but she is also getting involved in new art forms that will rule the art world in the next few years. She showcases virtual and digital art and has also worked with Mr Doodle on NFT.
Redefining Art with Pearl Lam's Podcast
If anyone thought for once that Pearl Lam would continue to be happy being a gallerist, curator, collector, and patron, then it cannot be an idea further from the truth. The lady has an eye for art and can see and smell art and artists in the most non-conventional places and fields.
With Pearl Lam’s Podcasts, one would assume she would only interview artists. Once again, Lam has proved people wrong and has been interviewing individuals from a wide range of professions, including artists.
Her first guest was a black art student; for many, it was a surprise; the second guest was chef Stéphanie Le Quellec, winner of two Michelin Stars. The duo discussed the art of fine dining, experimentation, and female entrepreneurship. In another episode, Lam had the podcast with architect Thomas Heatherwick and a recent one with hairstylist Kim Robinson.
People might think there is no relation to art with any of these guests, so what do the most recognisable gallerists in the world talk about? One must follow Pearl Lam’s podcast to know how she sees art and artistry in everything around her, in every profession, and how it can be used to establish a collaborative field where lines can be blurred between professionals and artists.