Institute for Provocation (IFP) was an independent art organization and project space founded in 2010.

Combining the study of theory and artistic practice, IFP aims to combine cross-disciplinary knowledge and stimulate cultural exchange and production in a collective approach. IFP organizes and advocates various kinds of activities, including artist residency, research project, discussion, exhibition making, workshop, publication, etc. on the basis of considering the dynamics of the relationship of independent art space with the society. Through a wide network of artists, researchers and makers in China and beyond, IFP can provide intelligence to incoming residents and collaborators who themselves become part of the network. We reckon the interaction between practice of residence artists and IFP’s institutional practice are constantly in a relationship of mutual provocation, friction and cooperation.

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Due to the travel and movement restrictions enforced in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, IFP had to close its residency programmes. In 2021, IFP finally closed its workspace in Beijing and currently only exists as an archive of projects.