An exhibit by nine local artists opens in Beijing this weekend.

  Jef Bourgeau, director of the Museum of New Art (MONA) in Pontiac, said the exhibit marks the first time that artists from the Detroit area have been invited to exhibit in China’s capital.

  “Pure Detroit” opened at the Art Channel Gallery in Beijing on Saturday. The exhibit is part of the “Changing Cities” series launched by MONA in 2007.

  The goal is to promote an exchange of exhibitions featuring artists from around Detroit with those from other cities. Previous exchanges have brought a show of Chicago artists to MONA in 2007, and last year MONA traded work with Galerie Lisi Hämmerle in Bregenz, Austria and Galerie Eva Bracke in Berlin.

  Rose Jiang of the Art Channel Gallery in Beijing will select a group of artists to exhibit at MONA, starting April 25 to May 30.

  The local artists in the Beijing show, all of whom live and work in and around Detroit, include Kyohei Abe, Ford Wallace Ford, Mary Fortuna, Kelly Frank, Cyrus Karimipour, Marla Karimipour, Corine Vermeulen-Smith, Vagner Mendoca Whitehead and Alison Wong.  The group includes photographers, painters and sculptors.

  Bourgeau said the Berlin exhibit last year was tremendously successful and even succeeded in attracting support from Daimler AG, which flew the local artists to Berlin for the official opening in December, exposing the artists to a new group of potential collectors.

  “Abroad, Detroit maintains its persona of being a tough town. That feeds into a special mystique about us. It's rough-and-tumble, but it's fresh too. Tied into the current economic crisis, people are even more interested in what’s happening here,” Bourgeau said. “Detroit has become iconic to both what's gone wrong, and what it'll take to pull out of this. That entire mix helps push all these international galleries to say yes to the exchanges,” Bourgeau said. “And it's proven the most effective method for getting Detroit artists out there to a larger audience. With the visual arts, visibility is most important. And it’s also a true exchange. The Austrian artists are opening here on March 7, with a reception from 6 to 9pm. This cultural crossover fuels the excitement of the project too.

  “There are plenty of collectors here. But it’s difficult for local artists to make a living because there are so few outlets for their work to be viewed and sold. Obviously we need more galleries showing regional art, but our public art institutions such as MoCAD and the DIA need to become more involved as well. They need to step up to the plate with projects that include local artists. It won't really cost them anything, being home-bred, and any cultural rewards will affect the region for generations."

  The perception of Detroit as a city of just decaying buildings is definitely not the image these artists are trying to promote.

  “As a visual artist, Detroit is a very stimulating place, and for the past three years I have made it my primary subject matter; I'm using the medium of photography to examine the city of Detroit,” said Corine Vermeulen-Smith, one of the artists in the exhibit.

  “I’m not interested in the so-called urban ruins but more in looking at future scenarios of alternative kinds of urbanism. I grew up in Waddinxveen, which is a small town in The Netherlands. I came to Michigan to go to grad school, Cranbrook, and fell in love with Detroit. People think that’s odd but I find it the most fascinating - and definitely the most futuristic - place in the United States,”  she said.

  Cyrus Karimipour of Bloomfield Hills, one of the nine artists exhibiting in Beijing, said the Detroit group received a warm reception in both Germany and Austria. “They really tapped into our art,” said Karimipour, who noted the museum director in Bregenz bought several pieces for his own private collection.

  "City by city," Bourgeau added, "Detroit is making its mark on the global art scene."