'What is art?' This has long been questioned and explored by artists of all nationalities for a long time. When artists ask, 'What is art?' they are interested in new forms and practices that have not yet been explored; when we think about what art is, they use these other possibilities to expand and enrich our understanding.
The Texture of Expression looks at the artworks created by a younger generation of artists in pursuit of personal goals that are motivated by the questions they ask about art. This exhibition invites six artists, including Ou Ming, Wang Zhiyuan, Yin Changzhi, Yang Guangnan, Yao Hai, and Zhang Fengyuan, to exhibit more than 40 works of different types such as sculpture and painting.
Not only do they use different types of materials and forms; they each explore novel expressions. Ou Ming is committed to using plaster as a medium to create a sculptural form that is as close to the essence of life as possible. His works are sculptures that can breathe. Wang Zhiyuan's works are based on the direct interaction between materials, tools and the body, constantly promoting the development of the works. Yin Changzhi's creation revolves around the material frame, flatness and spatial structure of painting, rethinking painting practice. His works intersect painting and relief. Yang Guangnan's art is structural and is based on differences. Above, it reflects the process of creating art based on the purposeful questioning of the basic functions of art. Yao Hai uses various methods such as splashing paint, collage, sewing, etc. Colour and form open up more dimensions of visual experience. Zhang Fengyuan's creation uses the inherent flexibility and tension of fabric materials to evoke simple and strong emotions related to personal life experience and intricate relationships, as well as human emotion and conventions.
Art was once an arrangement of colours, textures and shapes in order to touch a sense of space, form, light—whether natural, real or imagined. But in the project The Texture of Expression, the raw materials are both the substance of the object and the content of the artwork. The materials used to construct the picture are as fascinating as traditional painting, sometimes even more direct, because they express the unusual. It takes people by surprise, which is what we expect from art—to touch the heart.
Press release courtesy Studio Gallery.
OCAT Xi'an, Xixian Fengdong Cultural Center, Feng River East Road, Xi'an, China
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Sunday: 10:00-17:30(No entry after 17:00)