The strange world of young Shanghai artists

• Source: Global Times
• [10:13 July 14 2010]
• Comments

Hanging by Zhang Yong

This mesmerizing piece explores the tension created when traditional values and mindsets are confronted by the frenetic pace and confusing flux of the modern world. The artist uses various representation of an old man, sometimes rendered as a Bud-dha and at other points as an abstracted red figure in various conflicts with television screens.

The animation is highly detailed and the sweeping forms of the landscapes continually shift and distort, creating a deep sense of dislocation. The video also functions as a criticism of our media environment, showing a figure who is not only force-fed information but one whose very identity is created through its interaction with technology.

Paranoia and frustration are themes explored throughout the exhibition. The Liu Dao collective, who work out of their Island6 premises on Moganshan Road, contribute a number of their signature LED pieces.

The most engaging of these is based on The Butterfly Lovers, a tragic Chinese legend concerning two lovers who cannot be together while alive.

Tang Shu's oil paintings feature university students and migrant workers, present-ing the two groups as dreamers that are suffocating in the modern world; tired and lost.

Gaunt, worn-out workers hover by a loudspeaker that is barking out instructions in Announcement, while ancient-looking students stare numbly into space, ghost-like and broken in University Students.

Taken as a whole, the exhibition is pleasingly fresh. Zhang Yong, a Shanghai local artist who has an interest in abnormal psychology offers Hanging and Accident, two surreal works that reflect what Tanoto describes as "a slice of transitional states that are fueled with spontaneity, social primitivism, and mystical experience."

The gallery is actively looking to expand the conceptual range of its exhibitions and is keen to present new media and performance art pieces, alongside more traditional media. Tanoto said that film projection may become an important feature of the new space.

"We have such a fantastic roof terrace with an adjoining building that we may do large-scale projection onto in the future," she added.

Date: Until August 10, 11 am to 7 pm

Venue: 1918 G ArtSPACE

Address: 694 Huai'an Road

淮安路694号

Admission: Free

Call 6276-9100 for details