If you eschew the airport expressway that hurtles past 798 and instead take the tree-lined airport side-road (Jichang Fulu) that winds its way beside it, you will eventually come upon a blue-and-white cluster of signs that point you to the many and diverse corners of the “artist village” of Caochangdi - which this April will be home to an explosion of events under the auspices of the Caochangdi PhotoSpring.

Fifty-five years ago this May, yet another aspiring painter arrived in Paris. The French capital was then the mecca for artists from around the world, but 34-year-old Chu Teh-Chun (Zhu Dequn), who is being honored by a major retrospective this month at the National Art Museum of China (NAMOC), had traveled particularly long and far to reach the city of his dreams. His study of art had begun almost 20 years before at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, and from the first time he looked inside a book of Western painting he knew Paris was where he wanted to be.

It’s the dog days of summer, and I for one feel it’s high time we got to appreciate art after the sun goes down, preferably over a few drinks. Those of a similar persuasion will appreciate the tips contained in this month’s Art Feature, which records the excellent trend towards situating art where the food and drink is – and within the Third Ring Road too.

But for those made of sterner stuff, 798 is making a big play to get you out to the galleries this month. Commencing August 15 and running for a month at the 706 Space and other galleries around 798, the Beijing 798 Biennale brings us the work of 70 artists, both Chinese and international.

One summer weekend soon, Tim Crowley wants us to take a trip. We won’t need to pack a bag. All that’s required is to step into a darkened room, where 18 videos playing on a loop will take us on a journey inside the heads of some very eccentric artists indeed.

We’ll see a man jumping and cavorting, trying desperately to break out of a gorilla suit; another traveling blindfolded for 13 hours just to have a few focused minutes in front of a painting in Madrid; rubber glove puppets, dripping with paint, enacting the lives of Jackson Pollock and Andy Warhol; and a series of ordinary people standing in front of the camera held by Chinese artist Yang Zhenzhong, stating the obvious: “I will die.”

Crowley remembers clearly how he discovered the last of these videos. “I was at this huge art fair in Madrid in 2000,” he says “And in a corner I found this video playing called I Will Die. It was the best thing I saw in three days.”

Designer Liu Lu returned to China in 2007 after a decade abroad, which took her from Swiss boarding school to the Parsons School of Design and on to a job styling Puff Daddy, Nelly Furtado and Rihanna. Now she’s opened an airy space next door to Mosto at Nali Patio.

Summer’s here and with it the contemporary art world’s favorite excuse for a party – the Venice Biennale, which opens June 7. The fact that Venice is one of the most beautiful cities on earth no doubt played a role in its biennale becoming the most prestigious fixture on the contemporary art calendar, but for decades now, arriving as an artist in Venice has meant you have arrived internationally.

Romeo and Juliet
With all the international talent in town, let’s not forget the artists who call Beijing home. Over the last three years, under the direction of Chris Verrill, Beijing Playhouse has brought a touch of Broadway to Beijing with a series of lively classic productions from A Christmas Carol to this month’s Romeo and Juliet. Beijing Playhouse likes to keep it lighthearted and promises to find the humor in Shakespeare’s beloved tragedy of star-crossed love. The Bard’s original three acts and 3.5 hours have been cut to a sprightly two acts and two hours, and spiced up with musical numbers and a change of scene from Verona to Shanghai.

Ah, the rites of spring! Star-crossed love down the pub (see Romeo and Juliet at Block 8); musically-inclined meet-cutes at The Bookworm (see Basically Beethoven, May 14); Mimi and Carmen dying tragically young at the Egg (courtesy of the NCPA Opera Festival); and the Rite of Spring itself. Yes, French-Algerian choreographer – and one-time boxer – Heddy Maalem has joined with the Sichuan Modern Dance Group to bring the ballet to Beijing.