Director Judith Neilson has amassed an incredible collection of Chinese contemporary (post 2000) art. So much that only a fraction of it is now being shown over four spacious floors at her recently opened White Rabbit art museum.

The gallery’s second exhibition, The Tao of Now features works by more than 40 artists with finger-on-the-pulse themes like land theft, political power and the lust for luxury goods, yet their works are also steeped in the oldest parts of Chinese culture.

Fusty conceptions of Chinese drawings and paintings don’t belong here. You can expect a quiet place to appreciate Dong Yuan’s domestic interiors meticulously painted trompe l’oeil, and Zhang Chun Hong’s 11-metre-long, near-photographic drawing of a plait of hair.

Get lost in the spotlight that shines on Gong Ling Qi’s 210 miniature everyday tools, and see what happens when you pass Wang Yuyang’s breathing and battered full-sized minivan.  Take your time to read the subtitles of Chili’s wild Red Star Motel Series and take in Qin Fengling’s Scaffold, a huge wood-on-canvas structure swarming with figures made of paint straight from the tube.

You’ll need a solitary place to reflect on the role China’s behemoth social change has manifested in art so drop into the Teahouse, where Yusuf, an Uyghur tea expert serves a huge range of Chinese-grown teas.

The White Rabbit – a big herald of what’s happening right now in contemporary Chinese art.

The Tao of Now
22 January until 1 August 2010
White Rabbit Gallery
30 Balfour Street, Chippendale 2008
Thursday – Sunday 10am – 6pm
T: (02) 8399 2867
Free