The Realm Collective Forum (RCF) Community Annual Art Summit focuses on the cross-border integration of art and commerce, intelligent interaction, and contemporary art, aiming to explore the relationship between culture, art, and technology, and present a journey of symbiotic exploration that transcends tradition and the future. This year's summit, centred on the theme "From the Origin to Symbiosis," features keynote speeches and two thematic sub-forums, focusing on cutting-edge industry issues and achieving intellectual resonance.
When the veins of civilisation collide and merge across mountains and seas, the spirituality of art, the rationality of commerce, and the sharpness of technology break through boundaries and embrace one another, creating a cultural feast that gathers global wisdom. The "RCF Community International Art Summit” officially opens on January 2nd, 2026, at EKA·Tianwu in Shanghai.
RCF has become a co-creation partner of TEDx's Danshui Road Narrative, a globally renowned stage for leaders, to jointly create "PRISM." More than 12 opinion leaders from various sectors will use their individual narratives as a prism to reflect the vibrant spectrum of thought, art, technology, media, fashion, personal growth, and business collisions. As the core visual carrier of the summit, this contemporary art group exhibition, centred on "the contemporary translation of civilisational contexts," unfolds a contemporary crossover between intangible cultural heritage and technology, making the "origin" tangible and the "symbiosis" perceptible.
This event is jointly presented by the following organisations:
Guiding Units: National Base for International Cultural Trade (Shanghai), National Copyright Trade Base (Shanghai)
Supporting Unit: Shanghai Association for International Cultural Exchange
Organising Units: RCF・Gongyu × EKA・Tianwu
Co-organising Units: Shanghai Super-Original Brain Science Industry Research Institute, TED x Danshui Road, Youmeng
Supporting Institutions: Xu Beihong Art Museum, Shanghai Public Art Collaborative Innovation Centre
Considered by: Shanghai Huangqin Advertising Culture Communication Co., Ltd.
FROM ORIGINS TO SYMBIOSIS
Preface
Contemporary art transcends the confines of singular media, as easel works, installations and interactive creations converge and flourish. Rooted in the primal coordinates of water, land and earth, intangible cultural heritage (ICH) patterns and traditional craftsmanship embody the poetic harmony between humanity and nature. Infused with Eastern cultural rhythms, these elements are deconstructed and reimagined through contemporary art, evolving into fluid perceptual landscapes. Walter Benjamin's "Aura" is reborn here - not bound to the uniqueness and distance of traditional originals, but transformed into a cross-temporal spiritual resonance that aligns cultural essence with modern audiences' hearts.
The blurring of boundaries and collision of diverse forms envisions a symbiotic future. Traditional cultural genes and contemporary artistic languages Intertwine in the way Gilles Deleuze's "Rhizome" theory describes-decentralised, non-hierarchical, with new connections sprouting at every node. Experimental expressions liberate ICH's essence from rigid symbolic shackles, unlocking infinite possibilities via interdisciplinary dialogues.
"From Origin to Symbiosis" gently weaves civilisation's ancient textures into contemporary contexts. Centred on "the contemporary translation of civilisational veins", the exhibition unfolds across three spaces, echoing a core ethos:
Inquire into the origin, safeguard the warmth of humanity;
Embrace symbiosis, cherish the tenderness of all things.
Space 1
The Material Foundation: Tangible Primal Form of Civilisation
Inspired by flowing water, this space traces cultural origins through ICH patterns and traditional craftsmanship - the material bedrock of civilisation. From water-wave-inspired ancient motifs to season-aligned craftsmanship, it presents the tangible primal state of "water-land-earth" symbiosis, not distant nostalgia. By reflecting on the on-site art's spiritual impact on viewers, we return to civilisation's roots, reconnect with art’s inherent authenticity, and retrieve time-buried ancient techniques and cultural heritage. These echoes are not stagnation, but steady steps forward.
Space II
Transcreation • Resonance : The Essence of Spirit: A Contemporary Field of Manifestation
Today, art is gradually breaking free from the confines of the tangible. Deconstructive thought permeates the very veins of creation, allowing painting, installation, and interactive art to grow and intertwine within the same breath.
Concept has become a more profound language; walking through this, we perceive the fluid life posture of all things. The implicit aura proposed by Benjamin's "Aura" transcends and deconstructs the cognitive boundaries of artworks. Contemporary art shatters the constraints of medium, transfers traditional genes, and while one may glimpse the cultural resonance carried by intangible cultural heritage, it is largely a contemporary transcreation by the artists. The lingering "Qi" in Eastern aesthetics unfolds the implicit fabric of civilisation into a contemporary field that is palpable and tangible, forming a gentle transition from origin to symbiosis.
The aura has not dissipated; rather, it is reborn in contemporary times. It no longer clings to a singular original but transforms into the spiritual resonance among interaction, connection, and the on-site gazer.
The Wedding With Myself
Embroidery | Silk, Yarn | 2m * 2m | 2019
Toria Ya Tuo
Space III
Symbiosis • Myriad Forms
The Weave of the Future: A Borderless Symbiotic Network
Boundaries, thus, dissolve. All things whisper in collision, as inherent spaces are gently shattered. When the foundation of the "origin point" converges with the dimensional ascension of "texture," the dissolution of "boundaries" becomes inevitable: both humans and art could fade from tangible form, leaving behind only the silent resonance between spirits. Traditional genes intertwine with contemporary syntax here, spreading like the “rhizome", described by Deleuze. Like mountains and waters flourishing freely between heaven and earth without a centre or predetermined paths. Connections emerge at any point of encounter, forming an unpredictable, vibrant network.
