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Paintings inspired by 'Life of Pi' film
By Xu Wenwen |
May 7, 2013, Tuesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
AFTER watching the film "Life of Pi," oil painter Chen Dongfan could not sleep, until he created two works inspired by the movie, "Pi" and "Pi 2."
The two works, along with other six paintings and one installation, are part of Chen's solo exhibition underway at Inna's Contemporary Art Space in Hangzhou through May 16.
All works reflect Chen's style: bright colors, distorted designs and representational yet abstract patterns. One critic calls it "half childlike, half evil."
"Pi" features many eyes, eyeballs, palms and teeth in a work that is both metaphysical and psychedelic. "Pi 2" is similar.
"It was hard to describe my emotions after watching the film, but I was relieved when I had completed the two paintings," says 30-year-old Chen who studied at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou.
Last month, he was invited by the British Council to paint a London taxi parked by West Lake in Hangzhou. The decorated cab is one of the exhibits and activities promoting British technology and innovation in China.
At the exhibition, one of Chen's works titled "A Tree" is a realistic profile of a bird with green, red, blue and white feathers and deep eyes.
"It is inspired by a tree near the seashore in Malaysia. But why did it become a bird? I am also curious," Chen says.
An installation titled "Monument to 2012" was inspired by the worldwide rumor that the year 2012 would be the end of the world. Chen built a "magic cube" covered with white foam and feathers. Mounted on pieces of foam, the cube tilts a bit.
On four sides of the cube are the digits 2, 0, 1 and 2. A corner has been cut off.
Another solo exhibition by Ding She, titled "Swaying Dots and Lines," is underway at the West Lake Museum of Contemporary Art, very close to Inna's Contemporary Art Space.
Ding, 41, is the deputy secretary general of Shanghai Artists Association. He started abstract painting in the early 1990s, and recently has painted many works in both oil and Chinese ink wash featuring lines and grids.
His work "Where Am I" consists of thousands of small orange and blue square frames, which are overlapped and interwoven. Beneath the grid are other vague forms.
His other works have a similar feel. "Scenic Pattern 11-10," if viewed from a distance, appears to be a pure blue canvas. Up close, it is actually a very dense blue grid that obscures some form that cannot be defined.
In "Scenic Pattern 2010-0," blue, light blue and purple lines are interwoven to form a thick grid, which is built up with acrylic paint.
"My painting is my response to life," Ding explains. "I repeat simplicity. But repetition does not mean sameness, and simplicity does not mean monotony.
"I convey a message that all vast things start from trivial things."
Ding's ink-wash paintings are similar. He writes or paints on rice paper until it is completely covered.
? Exhibition by Chen Dongfan
Date: Through May 16 (closed on Monday), 10am-7pm
Address: 465 Hefang St
Tel: (0571) 8702-3522
Admission: Free
? Exhibition by Ding She
Date: Through May 16
Address: 82-1 Nanshan Rd
Tel: (0571) 8702-4609
Admission: Free
The two works, along with other six paintings and one installation, are part of Chen's solo exhibition underway at Inna's Contemporary Art Space in Hangzhou through May 16.
All works reflect Chen's style: bright colors, distorted designs and representational yet abstract patterns. One critic calls it "half childlike, half evil."
"Pi" features many eyes, eyeballs, palms and teeth in a work that is both metaphysical and psychedelic. "Pi 2" is similar.
"It was hard to describe my emotions after watching the film, but I was relieved when I had completed the two paintings," says 30-year-old Chen who studied at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou.
Last month, he was invited by the British Council to paint a London taxi parked by West Lake in Hangzhou. The decorated cab is one of the exhibits and activities promoting British technology and innovation in China.
At the exhibition, one of Chen's works titled "A Tree" is a realistic profile of a bird with green, red, blue and white feathers and deep eyes.
"It is inspired by a tree near the seashore in Malaysia. But why did it become a bird? I am also curious," Chen says.
An installation titled "Monument to 2012" was inspired by the worldwide rumor that the year 2012 would be the end of the world. Chen built a "magic cube" covered with white foam and feathers. Mounted on pieces of foam, the cube tilts a bit.
On four sides of the cube are the digits 2, 0, 1 and 2. A corner has been cut off.
Another solo exhibition by Ding She, titled "Swaying Dots and Lines," is underway at the West Lake Museum of Contemporary Art, very close to Inna's Contemporary Art Space.
Ding, 41, is the deputy secretary general of Shanghai Artists Association. He started abstract painting in the early 1990s, and recently has painted many works in both oil and Chinese ink wash featuring lines and grids.
His work "Where Am I" consists of thousands of small orange and blue square frames, which are overlapped and interwoven. Beneath the grid are other vague forms.
His other works have a similar feel. "Scenic Pattern 11-10," if viewed from a distance, appears to be a pure blue canvas. Up close, it is actually a very dense blue grid that obscures some form that cannot be defined.
In "Scenic Pattern 2010-0," blue, light blue and purple lines are interwoven to form a thick grid, which is built up with acrylic paint.
"My painting is my response to life," Ding explains. "I repeat simplicity. But repetition does not mean sameness, and simplicity does not mean monotony.
"I convey a message that all vast things start from trivial things."
Ding's ink-wash paintings are similar. He writes or paints on rice paper until it is completely covered.
? Exhibition by Chen Dongfan
Date: Through May 16 (closed on Monday), 10am-7pm
Address: 465 Hefang St
Tel: (0571) 8702-3522
Admission: Free
? Exhibition by Ding She
Date: Through May 16
Address: 82-1 Nanshan Rd
Tel: (0571) 8702-4609
Admission: Free
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