An Inner Journey

Contemporary by Angela Li is proud to present “An  Inner Journey”, an art exhibition  featuring  works  by  four established contemporary  Chinese  artists:  Cang  Xin,  Chen Wenling,  Wu  Didi  and  Zhang  Qikai. Comprised of paintings,  sculpture  and  video  installation,  the exhibition  investigates  and questions existential  ambiguities in  life. The  exhibition will  run  from  6th to 28th October, with an opening reception on Thursday, 6th October at 6 –8 p.m.attended by the artists. 

As humanity evolves and our society becomes more mature and sophisticated, both the urgency of the continuous search for true inner self and inner peace, and the investigation into our existence in nature and our role within the society seems to escalate. Studied in conceptual ways, the exhibition presents various aspects and  observations of life from different  angles, with  the  intention  of redefining and reinterpreting life and existence. 

Multimedia and performance artist Cang  Xin’s artistic inspirations are often influenced by his religious belief. To  him, the art-creating process is a spiritual  way for  him to review  his inner  self as  well  as the world  around him.In his Hidden Consciousness series, the subject matter is imaginary,  filled  with mysterious objects  and  beings.The  use  of  traditional  Chinese  painting  materials  of  silk  and  pigment further creates  a  state  of  contradiction  against  such made-up objects  and  beings. Acting as a visual extension to his belief  in animism,  these works are  the  continued  exploration  of his spirituality and investigation in the meanings of existence. 

Renowned  Chinese  sculptor Chen  Wenling’s Memory  Tree is lively yet complex, expressing his attitude towards life and society. As a continuation of the legacy of his Red Memory series, the work at first  glance shows  his  sense  of  humour,  while  at  the  same  time inspires  his  audience  to  look  for the much  deeper  meanings embedded  within. With  a little  man  hanging upside  down  on a tree  in a carefree state, the  sculpture conveys the  artist’s new  phase of life in  which he has  overcome a  major illness and reflects the malleability and strength in humanity. 

Wu  Didi draws  the  subject  matter of  her paintings from  the  simplest  elements  of  nature,  such as bamboo, stones, insects and weed. She gives each of her subjects a new life and unique identity. In her Bamboo series,  she“bends”the  bamboos  into  different  shapes; the  unnatural  look conveys the bamboo’s quality  of  resilience and toughness,  while the  closed shapes  with  split  parts depict life’s perfections and imperfections. The paintings serve as the artist’s poetic study to examine spirituality in humanity as well as her own meditative process during the long creative process. 

Zhang Qikai creates his art with references to philosophical tensions and focuses on reflections of the deepest  meanings of  life  and ways  of being. He encodes  his  observations  and  contextualises  his creativity  into  a  unique  and  peculiar  visual experience. His multimedia  work, Breathing, is  simple yet mystical. Overlayering sound  and  video  projection onto  an  imaginary  space  dimension,  the work awakens new emotions within the viewers to rediscover the phenomenon in life.