CHEN DAZHI
Crevice consists of five photographs that capture light falling through cracks in the rocks of Antelope Valley, northern Los Angeles. The strips of light in the dark caves resemble calligraphy, and, according to the artist, denote our struggle for freedom.
About the Artist
Chen Dazhi was born in Rongcheng, in China’s Shandong Province, in 1966. He received a Bachelor of Engineering from Nanjing University of Science and Technology and a master’s degree in journalism from Renmin University. He worked as a software engineer, newspaper reporter, and the president of an investment company, among other roles, before beginning his career in photography in 2009.
In his photography, Chen seeks to capture the depths of the human soul using a medium that is typically better at showing the surfaces of human skin. The natural landscape, human activity, and the spiritual world are the three prongs of his practice. One of the chief ambitions of his art, he says, is to break down the barriers between medium, image and spirit that arise from technology and culture.
Chen’s compositions are based on his Linear System, derived from Chinese ink painting—as opposed to the Zone System associated with American landscape photographer Ansel Adams.
Ocula | 2019
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