De Ying Foundation (DYF) is a charitable organisation that supports contemporary art in China and internationally. We believe that contemporary art has an essential place in today’s China, and are committed to widening access to the highest standards of arts programming. We take a patient, long-term approach that is collaborative and open-minded, supporting and learning from other organisations that share our aims and values, as well as launching our own initiatives when we feel there is a need. Arts education is especially important to us, since we believe both in its inherent value and in its potential for transformative impact. While our core focus as a foundation is on greater China, we also work with international partners whose work inspires us, and hope to engender and to be part of a genuine artistic dialogue between China and the rest of the world.
De Ying Foundation has provided long-term sponsorship for the De Ying Associate Curator, Visual Arts, at M+. The foundation is Founding Patron of the Shanghai Centre of Photography and a key sponsor of the Hangzhou Triennial of Fiber Art at China Academy of Art.
De Ying was a sponsor of the Beijing-based artist Cao Fei’s first major solo exhibition in China, “Staging the Era”, 2021, presented at UCCA, Beijing, as well as, the UCCA leg of “Who is He?”, the historical retrospective of Geng Jianyi, one of China’s pioneering conceptual artists in 2023. De Ying is the main supporter for Glenn Ligon’s first UK solo exhibition “All Over the Place”, 2024, at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. In 2018, we were also particularly excited to be early supporters of Steve McQueen’s Year 3 Project at Tate Britain.
About Us
Foundation Initiatives
FINAL SYMPOSIUM OF THE SECOND DE YING FELLOWSHIP 21.11.2025
The Second Programme ran from May 2024 through to October 2025, and focused on supporting individual research projects. As Part of this, each of the three fellows was actively involved in organising regular seminar panels for which they invited scholars and artists whose practices they wished to study and to share with each other. This process included inviting scholars from around the world, both in person and online, to provide fellows with exposure to diverse international practices, and to facilitate meaningful exchanges of ideas and perspectives.
De Ying Fellowship Programme 2024 - 2025 11.03.2024
De Ying Foundation is delighted to announce the successful applicants for its second fellowship programme, which commences in early May this year.
De Ying Curatorial Fellowship is conceived to present the selected fellows with an opportunity to think deeply and critically about the prevailing field of the contemporary arts, with a view to what they can contribute to its future, and to fostering a broader and more inclusive contemporary narrative within a local and international context. The 18-month Shanghai-based programme presents a unique opportunity to a small group of fellows to focus on curatorial research as a locus for developing their personal practice.
The 2024-2025 De Ying Curatorial Fellowship invited applicants to submit a proposal for an exhibition or curatorial project that they would like to realise and would not otherwise be in a position to develop fully. Following an intense first-round selection process, and second-round in-person interviews, three successful candidates were chosen. They are (in alphabetical order) : Nie Xiaoyi; Sam Shiyi Qian; Wang Huan.
De Ying Curatorial Fellowship is conceived to present the selected fellows with an opportunity to think deeply and critically about the prevailing field of the contemporary arts, with a view to what they can contribute to its future, and to fostering a broader and more inclusive contemporary narrative within a local and international context. The 18-month Shanghai-based programme presents a unique opportunity to a small group of fellows to focus on curatorial research as a locus for developing their personal practice.
The 2024-2025 De Ying Curatorial Fellowship invited applicants to submit a proposal for an exhibition or curatorial project that they would like to realise and would not otherwise be in a position to develop fully. Following an intense first-round selection process, and second-round in-person interviews, three successful candidates were chosen. They are (in alphabetical order) : Nie Xiaoyi; Sam Shiyi Qian; Wang Huan.
In Celebration of the Inaugural De Ying Fellowship Programme 21.07.2023
On July 21, the first De Ying Curatorial Fellowship celebrated the culmination of its inaugural 18-month program with a seminar centered on the presentation of the fellows’ research projects. The seminar was held at the Institute of Contemporary Art at NYU Shanghai.
De Ying Fellowship Programme 2022 - 2023 17.03.2022
The De Ying Foundation is delighted to announce the launch of its inaugural fellowship in the spring of 2022. The 18-month-long Shanghai-based programme presents a unique opportunity to a small group of candidates to focus on curatorial research as a locus for developing their personal practice.
The fellowship is conceived to present gifted candidates with an opportunity to think deeply and critically about the contemporary arts, with a view to the future, to the institutional landscape, and to fostering a broader and more inclusive contemporary narrative within a local and international context.
This inaugural fellowship is structured around the research topic: “Curating and the Institutional Landscape for China”; conceived to be of especial value at a moment when multiple previously immutable cultural and social narratives are in the process of being rethought. De Ying is delighted to support its first fellows in this pursuit: four extraordinarily talented young women, who are ideally placed to articulate a new version of China's current cultural conditions.
Here are the 2022-2023 De Ying Fellows (The fellows’ sequence is alphabetically arranged based on their family names):
Yuan FUCA
Ling GU
Gwendoline Cho-ning KAM
Jia LI
The fellowship is conceived to present gifted candidates with an opportunity to think deeply and critically about the contemporary arts, with a view to the future, to the institutional landscape, and to fostering a broader and more inclusive contemporary narrative within a local and international context.
This inaugural fellowship is structured around the research topic: “Curating and the Institutional Landscape for China”; conceived to be of especial value at a moment when multiple previously immutable cultural and social narratives are in the process of being rethought. De Ying is delighted to support its first fellows in this pursuit: four extraordinarily talented young women, who are ideally placed to articulate a new version of China's current cultural conditions.
Here are the 2022-2023 De Ying Fellows (The fellows’ sequence is alphabetically arranged based on their family names):
Yuan FUCA
Ling GU
Gwendoline Cho-ning KAM
Jia LI
Selected Projects
Steve McQueen - Year 3
The De Ying Foundation was a major early supporter of Steve McQueen’s Year 3 Project at Tate Britain, which saw the Turner Prize-winning artist and Oscar-winning filmmaker create an epic portrait of London’s Year 3 pupils that filled Tate Britain’s Duveen Galleries.
Cecily Brown - Where, When, How Often and With Whom 
The De Ying Foundation provided support for the production of the catalogue accompanying Where, When, How Often and With Whom Cecily Brown’s acclaimed survey exhibition at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Denmark
Cao Fei - Staging the Era
The De Ying Foundation was a sponsor of Cao Fei: Staging the Era at UCCA, Beijing, the artist’s first major solo show in China and largest and most comprehensive career retrospective to date.
Hangzhou Triennial of Fiber Art
De Ying Foundation is a key sponsor of the Hangzhou Triennial of Fiber Art at China Academy of Art. The 5th Hangzhou Triennial of Fiber Art is scheduled to open at Zhejiang Art Museum on September 23 of 2025. The theme is "Re-constellations".
M+ De Ying Associate Curator, Visual Art
De Ying Foundation has provided long-term sponsorship for the De Ying Associate Curator, Visual Arts, at M+. The Foundation is proud to advance the important curatorial work that enhances the diffusion of knowledge in the region, inspiring the next generations of Chinese art leaders and growing audiences.
Geng Jianyi - Who is He?
De Ying was a sponsor of the UCCA leg of “Who is He?”, the historical retrospective of Geng Jianyi, one of China’s pioneering conceptual artists in 2023.
Glenn Ligon - All Over The Place
The work of American contemporary artist Glenn Ligon in a landmark exhibition bringing together works by the artist alongside his unique interventions.
Funded by De Ying Foundation
Funded by De Ying Foundation
Liu Heung Shing - Lens·Era·People
Following the widely acclaimed presentation of "Liu Heung Shing - Lens·Era·People" organised by the Museum of Art Pudong in Shanghai in 2023, the De Ying Foundation was delighted to be the lead supporter of the exhibition's tour to the Sea World Culture and Arts Center, Shenzhen, in 2025.
CHAT exhibition - Threading Inwards
In 2024, independent curator Wang Huan, who was one of the second cohort of fellows awarded a place on the De Ying Fellowship programme, was invited as guest curator for a project at the Centre for Heritage, Arts and Textile (CHAT), in Hong Kong.
Turner Contemporary
In August 2025, Turner Contemporary announced a major exhibition to take place across its iconic first floor galleries by Bridget Riley, one of Britain's most influential artist. As an extension of this exhibition, the De Ying Foundation was pleased to support a year-long learning and engagement programme that transforms the Clore Learning Centre at Turner Contemporary into a dynamic Drawing Studio alongside Riley's solo exhibition.
TAIKWUN + AAA 
In 2024-25, the De Ying Foundation supported Asia Art Archive in establishing the position of De Ying Project Researcher; a role central to the research and publication project undertaken by AAA in collaboration with Tai Kwun Contemporary for release in early 2026.
Initial Research
De Ying Foundation is an institutional partner of Initial Research, a New York-based nonprofit arts organisation founded in 2025. Located in SoHo, Initial Research is dedicated to supporting early-stage artistic research and fostering cross-cultural exchange through fellowships and thematic public programs.
