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Welcoming Year of Snake with ‘Kaleidoscope’
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The “Kaleidoscope” at the Powerlong Museum in Shanghai is a perfect exhibition to welcome the upcoming Chinese New Year — the Year of the Snake.
Accompanied by the music of “The Blue Danube,” the solo exhibition of artist Zhuang Hongyi invites visitors to step into a space where the supposed boundary between the interiority of human experiences and the exterior world of nature blurs in an interplay of textures and hues.
Featuring more than 80 artworks that span the differing times and motions of the artist’s oeuvre, the exhibition surprises the viewers with a new visual language of the application of paper and colors.
Born in southwest China’s Sichuan Province in 1962, Zhuang moved to Europe in 1992. Today he is famous for his intricate use of paper flowers in landscapes and flowerbeds.
On entering the exhibition hall, viewers will be immediately drawn to the daunting and brilliant pieces filled with vitality and rhythm.
“At its core, my art is about happiness, enrichment and re-enchantment — an invitation to reconnect with the calmness that nature offers,” Zhuang said.
On closer inspection, viewers will find that these works are conjured up by the subtle piling up of paper petals sprayed with various layers of hues.
“We might not all speak the same language, but we can all read flowers,” Zhuang added.
In his eyes, the paper petals hold within them the possibilities of impermanence and change, as well as the hopeful resilience of nature. The impulsive yet refined details and movements of his works are an attempt at capturing and enunciating an emotive world that transcends language and cultural boundaries.
According to the artist, the title “Kaleidoscopic” is to affect and be affected by the transformative possibilities of color, motion and form.
“Horizon” is such an example. When standing on the right side of the work, the whole tableau is bathed in a cold-hued background. While standing on its left, it radiates a warm-hued backdrop.
“Through this exhibition, I hope to offer a moment of contemplation and joy, inviting each viewer to find their own connection to the delicacy of the natural world and the beauty of the singular flower within its ecology.”
Over the past decades, Zhuang has held exhibitions around the world, including the Groninger Museum in the Netherlands, the Erarta Museum in Russia and the Museum Ulm in Germany.
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