Amongst Shanghai's many artistic offerings this September are four decidedly and delightfully different exhibitions, ranging from stone circles and mud, right through to computerized clouds... ***

An Unexpected Turn of Events @ Osage Shanghai

September 10 – October 15 Osage Gallery has relocated to a gorgeous new home in the leafy heart of the French Concession, and their inaugural exhibition, An Unexpected Turn of Events sets a high precedent for future shows. The airy, sunlit space currently houses work by two artists: from China Chen Shaoxiong, and from Japan Tsuyoshi Ozawa. Comprising both individual as well as collaborative pieces, indoor as well as outdoor works, this mixed media show is thoroughly absorbing. Where Chen's work is often uncompromising (a chess set in which dark planes attack white high rise buildings entitled Anti-terrorism variety, for example), Ozawa's is spellbinding: miniature clay objects dug up from a lush Japanese garden hang suspended across the gallery's entrance space, whilst dotted throughout are playful challenges to traditional art venues in the form of Nasubi Galleries, fashioned out of milk boxes. ***

AIKO: Here's Fun for Everyone @ Andrew James Art

September 10 – October 31 Continuing the Japanese theme, Andrew James Art welcomes AIKO in all her neon, glittery glory. Born in Tokyo, the artist moved to New York in the late 1990s where she discovered a passion for both Americana imagery and graffiti. She combines the two to vibrant effect: large-scale canvases, laden with pop-art style pin ups, brilliant butterflies, spray can-wielding bunny rabbits and the occasional Hello Kitty, AIKO's work mirrors the exhibition title: Here's Fun For Everyone. Using various techniques from stencil, spray paint and silkscreen, AIKO's mix media works have been shown internationally, most recently at PS1 MoMA and Brooklyn Museum in New York, and now, of course, Shanghai. Head down to Andrew James, AIKO promises you it will be fun. ***

Richard Long: A Thousand Stones @ James Cohen Gallery

September 10 – November 7 From a graffiti artist to one who daubs the walls with mud: Richard Long: A Thousand Stones opened at James Cohan Gallery last weekend, and offers an altogether more contemplative experience. Long is perhaps the UK leader of land art -- works which are closely linked to the natural environment, either through location or materials. In Long's case, it's both: he undertakes long walks and documents them through photography, gathering and fashioning objects he finds along his way as well as using nature as a medium in its own right. In his own words, "The idea of making art out of nothing, I've got a lot of time for that. Walking up and down a field, or carrying a stone in my pocket, it's almost nothing, isn't it?" The exhibition at James Cohen features new works using materials indigenous to mainland China (Yangtze River mud features heavily), and comprises sculptures, photographs and found objects. ***

Resonance: New Media Art Week @ 18Gallery

September 19 - September 24 Next stop is the Bund for New Media Art Week at 18Gallery, which will take the form of an exhibition, lecture series, and performance at the Expo's Belgian Pavilion, and aims to present a dialogue between Chinese and Belgian artists. The new media exhibition, Resonance, takes light as its theme and will see the normally bright space at 18Gallery transformed into a dimly lit labyrinth, connected by a series of corridors. Highlights include Box by Kris Verdonck -- a cube containing the strongest possible light that can be concentrated on such a small surface (pictured). Visitors must wear dark glasses to see this, ironically, blinding light. Shanghai-based new media artist and computer visuals programmer, Aaajiao (Xu Wenkai) also features, with his rather beautiful 'Cloud.Data'. Computer generated clouds drift across overhead mirrors and computer screens, blurring reality and computer trickery, nature, and technology. ***