7 January–10 March, 2018
GANWU: Sensing the Material
Featuring works by Maarten Baas, Enrico Marone Cinzano, André Dubreuil, Rena Dumas, Studio Makkink & Bey, Xia Qingyong, Xue Tao, XYZ Design, and Danful Yang
Shanghai
Overview
Chinese philosopher Zhuangzi wrote, “The universe and I came into being together; and I, and everything therein, are ONE.”Chinese philosophers have explored a unique and Oriental way of sensing material things. The exhibition Ganwu showcases works by nine artists and designers who incorporate Chinese aesthetics into their works. They emphasize human experiences through their materials and create works with exquisite handcraft techniques.
Taking the Song dynasty painting Six Persimmons by Mu Xi as an example, the appearance and concept of a persimmon is easily shown from a subjective perspective. Only when the artist observed the persimmons from an objective perspective, not differentiating between them as subjects or objects, could the artist reveal the persimmons’ spirituality. This is what is known as “ganwu”: how the creator becomes equal to the objects being depicted, and how he or she co-exists with them.
Selected works
Enrico Marone Cinzano
Valet, 2015
H199.5 x W74 x D50 cm; H78 1/2 x W29 1/8 x D19 5/8 in.