Nov 23, 2011

G A O S H A N

GaoShan is a discrete artist. Sculpts on yellow sponges with a knife from Ikea. The fact that she works with sponges is pure coincidence, it happened one day when drinking tea with friends meanwhile her fingers dismembered a small sponge. As usually comes, she did her best to get the most realism of her figures, but now she opts for a more abstract art, giving center stage to the matter. Her series of round figures are irresistible to the senses by its roundness and lightness, something difficult to achieve and that GaoShan does with great naturalism when adding pink powder paint, silicone and some hair, so that somehow our intrinsic self can recognize itself in these forms without ever fully identify them with any part of our body. End feeling: curiosity, bewilderment and beauty.

GaoShan es una artista discreta. Esculpe sobre esponjas amarillas con un cuchillo de Ikea. Lo de trabajar con esponjas es fruto de la casualidad, se le ocurrió un día cuando bebía té con amigos mientras sus dedos descuartizaban una pequeña esponja que tenía entre manos. Como suele ser habitual, puso todo su empeño en sacar el máximo realismo de sus figuras, pero ahora opta por un arte más abstracto, concediéndole todo el protagonismo a la materia. Su serie de figuras redondas son irresistibles a los sentidos por su rotundidad y ligereza, algo difícil de conseguir y que GaoShan trata con sumo naturalismo cuando añade polvo de pintura rosa, silicona y algunos cabellos, por lo que de alguna manera nuestro yo más intrínseco se puede reconocer en estas formas sin llegar a identificarlas por completo con parte alguna de nuestro cuerpo. Sensación final: curiosidad, desconcierto y belleza. 



                                                                                          Images by Xepo Walter

Nov 7, 2011

V I D E O M A D N E S S

Here is a video from the last ¨MADness¨ event, where creatives in Shanghai inspire the audience during 7 minutes at Kin space! 



Join us on November the 30th (date tbc) and if you want to participate send me an e-mail!

Thank you Yiqing Zhang for the video.




Nov 2, 2011

Y A N G Z H E N Z H O N G

Together with photographer Xepo Walter, we interviewed and photographed the artist Yang ZhenZhong in his Studio in Shanghai.

ZhenZhong is a well-known artist abroad for his video art but now he is moving more into painting, photograph and installations

I extract a few sentences from the interview: 

¨I studied Fine Arts at China Academy of Art in Hangzhou (Note: This is one of the most prestigious Fine Arts Schools in China) where I was only taught how to paint and sculpt. I had to learn new forms of expression from the international books and magazines found in our libraries, there were not many, but enough to be inspired¨

¨I looked to the works of Bill Viola and Gary Hill, but I also saw movie tapes that they were not easy to find in China at that time but I got them from my friends (...) ¨

¨Since 1998 I started travelling abroad, the possibility of seeing the real works of other artists on live opened something in my mind because until then, I was used to see a copy of their work. I also saw art works of different themes than those ones I could find in China (...)¨