Cao Fei, one of China's most internationally recognized artists, is the subject of her first solo exhibition in Switzerland, titled 'Cao Fei: Testimonies to the Near Future,' at Kunstmuseum Basel Gegenwart. The show features key works spanning her career, including 'Whose Utopia' (2006), 'RMB City' (2007-11), and 'Asia One' (2018), which explore themes of technological capitalism, marginalization, and retrofuturism. Concurrently, a new project at Fondazione Prada in Milan examines how agricultural drones are transforming farming in China and Southeast Asia. In an interview with The Art Newspaper, Cao Fei discusses her recent inclusion in Time magazine's 100 most influential people of 2026, her collaborations with science-fiction writers, and how her earlier works have eerily predicted real-world events like pandemic isolation.
This article matters because it highlights Cao Fei's growing global influence and the prescient nature of her art, which blends Chinese historical aesthetics with speculative futures. Her recognition by Time magazine signals a broader acknowledgment of contemporary Chinese artists on the world stage, while her exhibitions at major institutions like Kunstmuseum Basel and Fondazione Prada underscore the relevance of her work in addressing urgent issues around technology, labor, and social change. The interview also reveals the cross-disciplinary dialogue between visual art and science fiction, enriching the cultural conversation about our collective future.