杰•利文森 (Jay LEVENSON) ：美国MoMA 国际收藏、展览合作总裁
采访人：丁晓洁 （99艺术网）
时间：2009年10月10日
地点：华彬论坛 中央美术学院美术馆
翻译：周茉
99艺术网：西方的收藏家在选择中国当代艺术品时标准是什么？
杰•利文森：我认为大多数美国博物馆都在努力做研究和调查，在做出选择之前更好地了解中国艺术展。因此，我认为美国在中国艺术家方面的专业知识还不够，才刚刚起步。
99艺术网：您认为亚洲当代艺术的发展上和欧洲有什么不同？
杰•利文森：这取决于您指的是亚洲哪个国家。我认为有意思的是中国当代艺术的发展非常迅猛。在日本不同，他们的发展时间要长一些。从美国的角度讲，大多数人都为中国当代艺术的发展速度感到震惊。
99艺术网：您认为中国的当代艺术和传统艺术之间还有联系吗？
杰•利文森：中国当代艺术家对中国传统艺术有很深刻的理解。我认为外国观赏者在欣赏中国艺术品时所遇到的困难之一就是他们对中国传统艺术不够了解，所以不明白当代艺术家们想说什么，因为有些当代艺术家用传统艺术来阐述他们的观点。所以我认为这是我们美国要更深入地了解中国传统艺术的另一个原因，那就是为了理解中国当代艺术。
Ding Xiaojie: What is the criteria for western collectors to choose among China’s contemporary art works?
Jay Levenson: Well, I think most American museums are really trying to do research and study, and understand the Chinese art scene better before they make their choices. So I think there’s not enough expertise yet in the United States about Chinese artists, it’s just developing now.
Ding Xiaojie: What do you think is the difference between the development of Asian’s contemporary art and Europe’s?
Jay Levenson: It depends on which country in Asia you are talking about. I think in China what’s so interesting is, there is a very sudden development of modern arts. It’s different in Japan, they have it over a longer period of time. But I think from American perspective, most people are surprised by how quickly Chinese modern arts are developed.
Ding Xiaojie: Do you think there is any connection between Chinese contemporary art and traditional art?
Jay Levenson: Yes, I think that Chinese contemporary artists have very deep understanding of Chinese traditional art. I think one of the problems for audiences outside of China is we don’t know enough about traditional art, in some cases to understand what the contemporary artists are saying, because some of the contemporary artists make references to traditional art to make their point. So I think it’s another reason why we need in America to get a deeper understanding of Chinese traditional art, if we want to understand contemporary Chinese art.
【编辑：丁晓洁】
